gray matter

noun

1

: neural tissue especially of the brain and spinal cord that contains nerve-cell bodies as well as nerve fibers and has a brownish-gray color

2

: brains, intellect

Synonyms

• brain(s)
• brainpower
• headpiece
• intellect
• intellectuality
• intelligence
• mentality
• reason
• sense
• smarts

Examples of gray matter in a Sentence

she's got the gray matter to figure that equation out

Recent Examples on the Web

Social engagement mitigates cognitive decline and enhances gray matter in the brain. —Bryan Robinson, Forbes.com, 6 Apr. 2025

People who volunteer, attend classes or get together with friends at least once a week have healthier brains in the form of more robust gray matter and less cognitive decline. —Bryan Robinson, Forbes, 6 Dec. 2024

Mindfulness practice leads to increases in regional brain gray matter density Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. —Avery Hurt, Discover Magazine, 17 Mar. 2025

Additionally, while a helpful marker, gray matter isn’t a perfect predictor of cognitive health. —Hannah Singleton, Health, 15 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1809, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gray matter

• backscatter
• antimatter
• atter
• batter
• blatter
• catarrh
• chatter
• clatter
• fatter
• flatter
• hatter
• latter

Kids Definition

gray matter

noun

1

: nerve tissue especially of the brain and spinal cord that has a brownish gray color

2

: intelligence sense 1

Medical Definition

gray matter

noun

: neural tissue especially of the brain and spinal cord that contains cell bodies as well as nerve fibers, has a brownish gray color, and forms most of the cortex and nuclei of the brain, the columns of the spinal cord, and the bodies of ganglia

called also gray substance