grass

1 of 2

noun

ˈgras 

often attributive

1

: herbage suitable or used for grazing animals

2

: any of a large family (Gramineae synonym Poaceae) of monocotyledonous mostly herbaceous plants with jointed stems, slender sheathing leaves, and flowers borne in spikelets of bracts

3

: land (such as a lawn or a turf racetrack) covered with growing grass

keep off the grass

the horse had never won on grass

4

grasses plural : leaves or plants of grass

5

: a state or place of retirement

put out to grass

6

[short for grasshopper, rhyming slang for copper] British slang : a police informer

7

: electronic noise on a radarscope that takes the form of vertical lines resembling lawn grass

8

: marijuana

grassless

ˈgras-ləs 

adjective

grasslike

ˈgras-ˌlīk 

adjective

grass

2 of 2

verb

grassed; grassing; grasses

transitive verb

1

: to feed (livestock) on grass sometimes without grain or other concentrates

2

: to cover with grass

especially : to seed to grass

intransitive verb

1

: to produce grass

2

British slang : inform sense 1

—often used with on

Synonyms

Verb

• fink
• inform
• rat (on)
• sing
• snitch
• split (on) [British]
• squeak
• squeal
• talk
• tell (on)

Examples of grass in a Sentence

Noun

They were smoking some grass.

Verb

that bloke would grass on his own mater to save himself

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Would a repeat violation for tall grass net the city $50 or $500? —Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 29 Nov. 2024

After another mile or so, the secluded cabin appeared, surrounded by pine trees and tall grasses, overlooking Lake Michigan. —Pat Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 28 Nov. 2024

Verb

Zink takes the time to camouflage, paying attention to every detail, grassing the chicken-wire frame of his boat blind with natural vegetation. —Joe Arterburn, Outdoor Life, 14 Nov. 2024

During the Clearances, thousands of peasant farmers were evicted to make way for industrial-scale sheep farming, their fields grassed, and woods razed for pasture. —Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 3 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English gras, from Old English græs; akin to Old High German gras grass, Old English grōwan to grow

First Known Use

Noun

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

Verb

circa 1500, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing grass

• Bahia grass
• barnyard grass
• beach grass
• bear grass
• bent grass
• Bermuda grass
• blue-eyed grass
• buffalo grass
• cotton grass
• couch grass
• cut-grass
• Dallis grass
• elephant grass
• fountain grass
• gama grass
• grass carp
• grass cloth
• grass court
• grass on/up
• grass roots
• grass tree
• grass widow
• grass widower
• harding grass
• Indian grass
• let the grass grow under one's feet
• love grass
• manna grass
• marram grass
• meadow grass
• napier grass
• nut grass
• oat grass
• orchard grass
• pampas grass
• pangola grass
• panic grass
• put (someone) out to grass
• quack grass
• Rhodes grass
• Saint Augustine grass
• salt grass
• saw grass
• scurvy grass
• short-grass prairie
• snake in the grass
• sour grass
• star grass
• St. Augustine grass
• Sudan grass
• sword grass
• tape grass
• the grass is always greener on the other side (of the fence)
• touch grass
• turtle grass
• tussock grass
• wire grass
• yard grass

Kids Definition

grass

1 of 2 noun

ˈgras 

1

: herbs suitable for or eaten by grazing animals

2

: any of a large family of green plants (as wheat, corn, bamboo, or sugarcane) with jointed usually hollow stems, long slender leaves, and small dry one-seeded fruits often in groups

3

: grass-covered land

especially : lawn entry 2

4

: marijuana

grasslike

-ˌlīk 

adjective

grassy

ˈgras-ē

adjective

grass

2 of 2 verb

1

: to seed with grass

2

: to provide (as cattle) with grass for food

Medical Definition

grass

noun

ˈgras 

: marijuana

Biographical Definition

Grass

biographical name

ˈgräs 

Günter Wilhelm 1927–2015 German writer