rye

1
[ rahy ]
See synonyms for rye on Thesaurus.com
nounAlso called rye whiskey (for defs. 4, 5).
  1. a widely cultivated cereal grass, Secale cereale, having one-nerved glumes and two- or three-flowered spikelets.

  2. the seeds or grain of this plant, used for making flour and whiskey, and as a livestock feed.

  1. a straight whiskey distilled from a mash containing 51 percent or more rye grain.

  2. Northeastern U.S. and Canada. a blended whiskey.

adjective
  1. made with rye grain or flour: rye rolls.

Origin of rye

1
before 900; Middle English; Old English ryge; cognate with Old Norse rūgr; akin to Dutch rogge,German Roggen

Words Nearby rye

Other definitions for rye (2 of 3)

rye2
[ rahy ]

noun
  1. a male Romani; Rom.

Origin of rye

2
First recorded in 1850–55; from Romani rai “man, gentleman,” ultimately from Sanskrit rājan “king”; see origin at rajah

Other definitions for Rye (3 of 3)

Rye
[ rahy ]

noun
  1. a city in SE New York, on Long Island Sound.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use rye in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for rye (1 of 3)

rye1

/ (raɪ) /


noun
  1. a tall hardy widely cultivated annual grass, Secale cereale, having soft bluish-green leaves, bristly flower spikes, and light brown grain: See also wild rye

  2. the grain of this grass, used in making flour and whiskey, and as a livestock food

  1. Also called: rye whiskey whiskey distilled from rye. US whiskey must by law contain not less than 51 per cent rye

  2. US short for rye bread

Origin of rye

1
Old English ryge; related to Old Norse rugr, Old French rogga, Old Saxon roggo

British Dictionary definitions for rye (2 of 3)

rye2

/ (raɪ) /


noun
  1. dialect a gentleman

Origin of rye

2
from Romany rai, from Sanskrit rājan king; see rajah

British Dictionary definitions for Rye (3 of 3)

Rye

/ (raɪ) /


noun
  1. a resort in SE England, in East Sussex: one of the Cinque Ports. Pop: 4195 (2001)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012