gray1
or grey
[grey]
- of a color between white and black; having a neutral hue.
- dark, dismal, or gloomy: gray skies.
- dull, dreary, or monotonous.
- having gray hair; gray-headed.
- pertaining to old age; mature.
- Informal. pertaining to, involving, or composed of older persons: gray households.
- old or ancient.
- indeterminate and intermediate in character: The tax audit concentrated on deductions in the gray area between purely personal and purely business expenses.
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- any achromatic color; any color with zero chroma, intermediate between white and black.
- something of this color.
- gray material or clothing: to dress in gray.
- an unbleached and undyed condition.
- (often initial capital letter) a member of the Confederate army in the American Civil War or the army itself.Compare blue(def 5).
- a horse of a gray color.
- a horse that appears white but is not an albino.
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- to make or become gray.
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Origin of gray1
before 900; Middle English; Old English grǣg; cognate with German grau
gray2
[grey]
- the standard unit of absorbed dose of radiation (such as x-rays) in the International System of Units(SI), equal to the amount of ionizing radiation absorbed when the energy imparted to matter is 1 J/kg (one joule per kilogram). Abbreviation: Gy
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Compare rad.
Origin of gray2
First recorded in 1975; named in honor of Louis Harold Gray (1905–65), English radiobiologist
Gray
[grey]
- A·sa [ey-suh] /ˈeɪ sə/, 1810–88, U.S. botanist.
- Robert,1755–1806, U.S. explorer and sea captain: discovered the Columbia River.
- Thomas,1716–71, English poet.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for gray
Contemporary Examples
I lie and nod my head yes while wiping the tears on my gray fleece sleeve.
Then the gift card is shopped online in a gray market to collect cold currency.
Caller: “He has a gray, gray coat with black sleeves and gray pants on.”
Her neon blue hair is teased high with a gray stripe emerging from the front.
On Sept. 30, 2012, FWS delisted the gray wolf and transferred wildlife management to the states.
Historical Examples
It faded soon into a gray fog, with puffs of wind from the southwest again.
MalboneThomas Wentworth Higginson
Gray Peter had been fresher than Sally at the end of the run of the day before.
Way of the LawlessMax Brand
"We'll let the men wrestle with the unpacking, girls," decided Mrs. Gray.
Grace Harlowe's Return to Overton CampusJessie Graham Flower
"I think I'll wait for you on the veranda, children," said Mrs. Gray.
Grace Harlowe's Return to Overton CampusJessie Graham Flower
Then I come on a slab of gray stone upstanding about fifteen feet.
Ballads of a BohemianRobert W. Service
gray1
- a variant spelling (now esp US) of grey
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gray2
- the derived SI unit of absorbed ionizing radiation dose or kerma equivalent to an absorption per unit mass of one joule per kilogram of irradiated material. 1 gray is equivalent to 100 radsSymbol: Gy
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Word Origin
C20: named after Louis Harold Gray (1905–65), English physicist
Gray
- Thomas. 1716–71, English poet, best known for his Elegy written in a Country Churchyard (1751)
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for gray
adj.
Old English græg (Mercian grei), from Proto-Germanic *grisja- "gray" (cf. Old Norse grar, Old Frisian gre, Middle Dutch gra, Dutch graw, Old High German grao, German grau), with no certain cognates outside Germanic. French gris, Spanish gris, Italian grigio, Medieval Latin griseus are Germanic loan-words.
The distinction between British grey and U.S. gray developed 20c. The noun is c.1200, from the adjective. Gray as figurative for "Southern troops in the U.S. Civil War" is first recorded 1863, in reference to their uniform color. Expression the gray mare is the better horse in reference to households ruled by wives is recorded from 1540s. The verb is 1610s (with an isolated instance from late 14c.). Related: Grayed; graying.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
gray
(grā)- A unit for a specific absorbed dose of radiation equal to 100 rads.
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Gray
Henry 1825?-1861- British anatomist whose work Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical (1858), known as Gray's Anatomy, remains a standard text.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
gray
[grā]
- The SI derived unit used to measure the energy absorbed by a substance per unit weight of the substance when exposed to radiation. One gray is equal to one joule per kilogram, or 100 rads. The gray is named after British physicist Louis Harold Gray (1905-1965).
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with gray
gray
In addition to the idioms beginning with gray
- gray area
- gray matter
also see:
- get gray hair from
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The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.