ingrain

Also en·grain

[in-greyn, in-greyn]

verb (used with object)

1. to implant or fix deeply and firmly, as in the nature or mind.

   Synonyms: imbue, inculcate, infuse

adjective

1. ingrained; firmly fixed.

2. (of fiber or yarn) dyed in a raw state, before being woven or knitted.

3. made of fiber or yarn so dyed.

   ingrain fabric.

4. (of carpets) made of ingrain yarn and so woven as to show a different pattern on each side; reversible.

noun

1. yarn, wool, etc., dyed before manufacture.

2. an ingrain carpet.

ingrain

verb

1. to impress deeply on the mind or nature; instil

2. archaic,  to dye into the fibre of (a fabric)

adjective

1. variants of ingrained

2. (of woven or knitted articles, esp rugs and carpets) made of dyed yarn or of fibre that is dyed before being spun into yarn

noun

1. 1. a carpet made from ingrained yarn

   2. such yarn

Word History and Origins

Origin of ingrain¹

First recorded in 1760–70; originally phrase (dyed) in grain (i.e., with kermes)

Word History and Origins

Origin of ingrain¹

C18: from the phrase dyed in grain dyed with kermes through the fibre

Example Sentences

Belief in witchcraft is also so deeply ingrained in Sierra Leone, even among many police officers, that there is often a fear of pursuing cases further - and most go unsolved.

Read more on BBC

Also, Kansas City Fed President Schmid said additional rate cuts could do more to ingrain higher inflation than shore up the labor market, Nugent adds.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

But it’s also easy to notice Farsi’s ingrained cynicism about the state of things, having once been imprisoned as a teenage dissident during the years following her country’s Islamic Revolution, now in exile.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

“History has shown us that persistent inflation can shift the psychology around price-setting, and inflation can become ingrained,” he said.

Read more on Barron's

When an ecosystem is so ingrained in your psyche, so essential to your culture and so central to the stories you tell about your reason for being, you have no choice but to safeguard it.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• instill