English → Latin
“grain” in Latin
grānumgrain, seed, small kernelsēmenseed (of plants); semen; graftvēnaa vein, blood vessel; a watercourse; a vein of metalsfibrafibre, filament; entrailscolōrōto color, tinge, imbue; to paint, dye
The English word grain itself goes back to Latin grānum.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
grain s.
A single seed of corn, granum (in all the meanings of the English word; e.g., of corn, salt, etc., but mica salis, after Plin., 22, 16, 14, does not mean “grain,” but “a few grains,” the former being always expressed by granum salis, Plin., 23, 8, 77).
Corn, Vid:
The seed of any fruit, semen: *granum seminale.
A small particle; e.g., a grain of salt; Vid: above. Often by aliquid with genitive, or aliquis in agreement. Some grain of allowance, aliquid veniae or aliqua venia. Anything must receive a grain of allowance, dandum est aliquid alicui rei: anything may receive some grain of allowance, est quatenus alicui rei dari venia possit (Cic.): a grain of gold, auri granum.
The smallest weight, *granum.
The veins or fibres of inanimate bodies, vena (in metals, marble, trees, etc): fibra (in plants): meatus ligni (in wood); hence (IMPROP.) “against the grain,” invita Minerva, ut aiunt (Cic.), or (after his definition) adversante et repugnante natura.
(To dye, etc) (To dye, etc) in grain, *fila singula (or fila ipsa nondum intexta) colorare or inficere: hence a rogue in grain, insignite improbus; veterator (an old hand); *homo plane inlectus vitiis (after Cic., Tusc., 3, 2; and Leg., 3, 13, 30); or trifurcifer, etc., totus ex fraude factus.
Dyed or stained substance; e.g., of dark grain, etc.; Vid. COLOR, DYE.
grain v.
(of wood) *marmori maculoso simile facere aliquid (like marble): *venas or meatum ligni pingendo imitari (like wood).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for grain?
- The usual Latin words for “grain” are grānum, sēmen, vēna; also fibra, colōrō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.