corn
UK: kɔːn | US: kɔːrn
n. 1. (chiefly British) The seed of cereal plants, especially wheat or barley.
n. 2. (chiefly US) Maize; a tall cereal plant yielding large grains set in rows on a cob.
n. 3. A small, hard particle or lump (e.g., a corn of salt).
The word "corn" traces back to Old English corn, meaning "grain" or "seed," derived from Proto-Germanic kurnam. Its meaning diverged geographically: in British English, it retained the broader sense of cereal crops, while in American English, it narrowed to refer specifically to maize after European contact with Indigenous American cultures. The semantic shift reflects the crop's dominance in North America.
The farmer stored the corn in a silo for the winter.
She sprinkled a corn of salt into the soup.
In England, "corn" often refers to wheat or barley.
The field was golden with ripe corn ready for harvest.
Popcorn is made from a special type of corn kernel.