grist

noun

ˈgrist 

1

a

: grain or a batch of grain for grinding

b

: the product obtained from a grist of grain including the flour or meal and the grain offals

2

: a required or usual amount

3

: matter of interest or value forming the basis of a story or analysis

4

: something turned to advantage or use

—used especially in the phrase grist for one's mill

Examples of grist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Those are just intermediary steps that are merely grist for the mill. —Lance Eliot, Forbes, 15 Jan. 2025

My encounters with dancing baseball players and rotating snow brooms were not grist for the mill of public discussion; this experience was unique to me. —Cal Newport, The New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2025

This association has haunted the process of telling Robert’s story, threatening to make of his suffering a narrow allegory, grist for political milling. —Michelle Orange, Harper's Magazine, 14 Dec. 2023

Greeting guests out front is a historic bell that had once hung at Tom’s grandfather’s grist mill in Greenville, Georgia. —Elizabeth Fazzare, Architectural Digest, 3 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English grīst; akin to Old English grindan to grind

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing grist

• grist for one's/the mill
• grist to one's/the mill

Kids Definition

grist

noun

ˈgrist 

: grain to be ground or already ground