barley
NounOpen English WordNet
Noun (2)
- a grain of barleySynonyms: barleycornType of grain, food grainKinds pearl barleyPart of common barley, Hordeum vulgare
- cultivated since prehistoric times; grown for forage and grainType of cereal, cereal grassKinds barley grass, squirreltail barley, common barley, little barleyMember of Hordeum, genus Hordeum
What does it mean? Question 1 of today’s quiz
Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Origin: OE. barli, barlich, AS. bærlic; bere barley + līc (which is prob. the same as E. like, adj., or perh. a form of AS. leāc leek). AS. bere is akin to Icel, barr barley, Goth. barizeins made of barley, L. far spelt; cf. W. barlys barley, bara bread. …92. Cf. Farina, 6th Bear.
Botany A valuable grain, of the family of grasses, genus Hordeum, used for food, and for making malt, from which are prepared beer, ale, and whiskey.
Barley bird Zoology, the siskin. — Barley sugar, sugar boiled till it is brittle (formerly with a decoction of barley) and candied. — Barley water, a decoction of barley, used in medicine, as a nutritive and demulcent.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54