corn

corn · noun

imported

Definitions

noun

  1. 1.

    (American English) A tall cereal plant with large grains set in rows on a cob; maize.

  2. 2.

    (British English) The chief cereal crop of a region, especially wheat or oats.

  3. 3.

    A small, painful area of thickened skin on the foot.

  4. 4.

    (informal) Something considered old-fashioned or overly sentimental.

Forms

plural: corns

Phrases & expressions

  • •
    corn on the cob — ears of corn cooked and eaten whole
  • •
    corny — overly sentimental or cliched

Related words

See also: grain, maize, wheat
Synonyms: grain, maize

Etymology

From Old English corn meaning "grain, seed," from Proto-Germanic kurnam. The specific meaning of "maize" is American, as corn was the dominant grain crop.