grist
/ɡrɪst
/noun [mass noun]
1Corn that is ground to make flour.The reintroduction of a deeply resented tax on grist in the former papal provinces of Emilia and Romagna provoked widespread unrest in the late 1860s....
- Census of 1861 reported that there were 13 flour and grist mills operating in Simcoe County.
- The owners of early 19 th-century New England grist mills were usually rather prosperous men, and like most of the population at that time, the majority were farmers.
1.1Malt crushed to make mash for brewing.At the distillery, the barley is milled to produce grist, to which heated spring water is added.
2Useful material, especially to support an argument: the research provided the most sensational grist for opponents of tobacco...
- Documents just made public may provide grist for his opponents.
- This subject is interesting grist for graduate seminars, but campus leaders have limited options when faced with a finite budget and rising demand for educational programs and services.
- The primary thrust has been to provide greater grist for litigation, rather than tackling the hard work of defining acceptable conduct.
Phrases
grist to the (or one's) mill
Origin
Old English 'grinding', of Germanic origin; related to grind.
Rhymes
- hop-harlot
- hophead
- Hopi
- hop in (or out)
- hop into
- Hopkins, Gerard Manley
- Hopkins, Mark
- Hopkinson, Francis
- Hopkins, Sir Anthony
- Hopkins, Sir Frederick Gowland
- Hopkinsville
- hoplite
- hopper
- Hopper, Edward
- Hopper, Grace Murray
- hopper head
- hop picker
- hop picking
- hopping
- hopping john
- hopping mad
- hopping mouse
- hopple
- hoppy
- hopsack