grey matter
Britishnoun
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Technical name: substantia grisea. the greyish tissue of the brain and spinal cord, containing nerve cell bodies, dendrites, and bare (unmyelinated) axons Compare white matter
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informal brains or intellect
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One of the areas of grey matter with the most pronounced and persistent changes was the so-called default mode network - which is involved in self-perception, empathy and altruism.
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
A number of studies in teens have suggested a pattern of grey matter thinning through adolescence with a "refining or pruning" of nerve networks as brains mature.
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
The scientists collected urine and saliva samples from the women on five occasions and discovered that, in some cases, rising oestrogen levels tracked closely with the reduction in grey matter.
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
They examined grey matter, which consists of neuron cell bodies and is often described as the brain’s “thinking” tissue.
From Science Daily • Feb. 19, 2026
As the grey matter of the cord enters the medulla it loses its crescentic arrangement.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 4 "Bradford, William" to "Brequigny, Louis" by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
