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Gray
1[grey]
noun
Asa 1810–88, U.S. botanist.
Robert, 1755–1806, U.S. explorer and sea captain: discovered the Columbia River.
Thomas, 1716–71, English poet.
gray
2[grey]
adjective
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.
noun
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.
a horse of a gray color.
a horse that appears white but is not an albino.
verb (used with or without object)
to make or become gray.
gray
3[grey]
noun
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). Gy
gray
1/ ɡreɪ /
noun
Gy. 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 rads
Gray
2/ ɡreɪ /
noun
Thomas. 1716–71, English poet, best known for his Elegy written in a Country Churchyard (1751)
gray
3/ ɡreɪ /
adjective
a variant spelling (now esp US) of grey
gray
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).
Other Word Forms
- grayly adverb
- grayness noun
- ungrayed adjective
- grayish adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of Gray1
Origin of Gray2
Word History and Origins
Origin of Gray1
Idioms and Phrases
Example Sentences
In the architectural age of minimalism and millennial gray, a wild and whimsical antidote made of old clinker bricks and jumbled shingles sits on a quiet street at the edge of L.A. and Culver City.
Their prey included larger species such as California sea lions, northern elephant seals, gray whale calves and Pacific white-sided dolphins, and they typically hunted in groups averaging nine individuals.
Fighting flared up again in Gaza and Lebanon despite cease-fires on both fronts, highlighting the gray zone the region finds itself in under deals that have halted two years of war without bringing sustained peace.
Beijing is systematically fostering an environment where “gray zone” activities such as economic coercion or political interference become the norm, lowering the threshold for direct conflict.
Now, after a photo shoot, she’s changed into gray sweats to sneak in a moment of self-care during our chat.
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When To Use
Gray and grey are simply different spellings of the same word, which refers to the color halfway between black and white (among other more figurative meanings).In popular use, the two spellings are used interchangeably, though one spelling is often preferred in many places. The spelling gray is much more common in American English, while grey is more common in British English.Remember: spell gray with an a in America, and spell grey with an e in England (among other places).Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between gray and grey.
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