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to gray

to gray

3 1.8
To become pale or whitish, often because of age
  • verb
  • /ɡreɪ/
  • US
: encanecer
  • There were circles under his eyes; his skin had grayed with stress.
  • graying hair

It is easier because because it's OK to go grey or bald or whatever happens.

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Examples

  • Despite his graying beard, his enthusiasm is childlike when he talks about his work.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Hair gets Gray, gets white, falls out, you lose it, right?

  • Like the more you work it in, the grayer you'll become.

  • We see SPECIAL AGENT CRAIG, a trim man in his 40s with graying temples.

    Fiction book (1995)
  • A tall, lean man with a white Stetson pushed back to show graying hair stood in the doorway.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • She began to gray as she entered her fifties, a sign of her wisdom and experience.

  • After years in the sun, he started to gray, transforming his once-black hair into a soft silver.

  • The old man looked back at his life and smiled, feeling proud of how his hair had grayed gracefully over the years.

Synonyms

to dun
vsto gray
8.6

To make something a dull brown-grey color

is a general shift to a pale neutral tone often from aging

Compounds

gray area
  • Informal
43 5.3

A situation that is not clearly in one category

13 1.0

A very deep grey color that reflects little light

gray matter
  • Specialized
12 4.1

The darker part of the brain and spinal cord containing nerve cells or used to mean being smart

6 2.0

Gray with a little blue like the sky before a storm

5 3.0

A large wild animal like a dog with gray fur that lives in forests and often hunts in packs

4 3.5

A medium-sized whale with grey skin that lives in the northern Pacific Ocean

3 6.3

A place where goods are sold without manufacturer permission, often cheaper and without warranty

3 2.7

A color that is mainly blue with some gray

3 3.9

A green color mixed with gray

2 3.5

A dark grey color with a slight blue or purple tone

2 3.2

Very dark gray like the color of burned wood

2 3.0

A grey color that looks shiny like silver

2 2.6

A light gray color like shiny metal

2 3.1

A very dark gray like the color of charcoal

2 4.8

A dark blue-gray color like a wet stone or a storm sky

1 2.0

A brown color mixed with gray

1 2.5

A grey color with a touch of blue

1 5.7

A medium-sized wild animal with gray fur that lives in North and Central America and can climb trees

1 3.9

A dark grey color like iron

1 2.8

A white color with a little grey in it

1 3.1

A dark color that is black with a little grey

1 3.7

A light gray color that looks like shiny silver

gray body
  • Specialized
1 9.9

An object that emits less light and heat than a perfect emitter at the same temperature

1 3.0

A pale grey color with a soft, shiny look

1 5.2

A medium-sized grey parrot from Africa that is very intelligent and copies human speech

1 3.4

A very pale gray color like the powder left after a fire

gray market
  • Specialized
1 7.2

A place where shares or bonds are traded outside an official exchange

1 3.8

A light pale gray that looks like soft smoke

1 2.7

A gray color with a little brown in it

1 3.0

A gray color with a little green in it

gray hat
  • Jargon
1 8.1

A person who finds computer security problems and sometimes breaks the law to test them

1 2.7

A grey color with a little brown in it

1 3.4

A gray color with a little red in it

1 4.2

A light pink color mixed with gray

1 5.8

A very large grey owl with a round face that lives in northern forests

1 3.7

A grey color with a little yellow in it

1 8.3

A female large wild bird with grey brown feathers like a grouse

1 7.2

A bird from northern forests with a black head that boldly takes food from people

1 8.0

A sea fish often caught near coasts for food and sport

1 3.2

A gray color with a little yellow

1 8.0

A very light grey that looks almost white

1 3.9

A dull gray color like stone or slate

1 6.6

A small gray songbird in North America with a call like a cat

1 6.0

A gray color with a hint of olive green

A dark gray color that looks almost black

Payne's gray
  • Specialized
1 9.5

A dark blue-grey color artists use in painting

gray substance
  • Specialized
1 9.4

Part of the brain and spinal cord that contains nerve cells and processes information

1 4.0

A gray color mixed with some red

1 6.0

A fish with a long rounded body that lives in seas and rivers that people often eat

1 7.5

A flat fish with pale gray flesh that people eat

1 8.0

An animal, often a horse, with a gray coat and darker gray spots

1 4.2

A dark grey color with a slight blue shine

1 7.7

A gray horse coat with darker gray spots

A common medium-sized squirrel from eastern North America with gray fur and a bushy tail

western gray squirrel
  • Specialized
1 5.4

A large gray tree squirrel with a bushy tail that lives in western United States forests

1 8.3

A low, many-branched plant with silvery leaves that shelters wildlife

1 6.7

A dark blue-gray color often used for suits and uniforms

1 6.4

A medium-sized birch tree with pale gray bark that grows in eastern North America in old fields and burned areas

1 7.7

A very dark gray color often used for suits, coats, and paint

1 7.6

A small bushy tree with whitish woolly twigs that grows in wet places

Davy's gray
  • Archaic
1 9.9

A dark color with a little purple or blue used in painting

gray alder
  • Specialized
1 7.6

A tree that loses its leaves each year with smooth gray bark and broad leaves

1 7.2

Meat from a common sea or river fish that people eat

1 7.9

A small plump bird with grey feathers and an orange face that lives in farmland

1 4.2

A soft gray-green color used for calm home or clothing styles

dwarf gray willow
  • Specialized
9.6

A small willow bush in the eastern United States with long narrow leaves that are gray and hairy underneath

A medium-sized birch tree with white or pale grey bark from eastern North America

8.1

A flat sea fish that lives in warm shallow waters near the Atlantic coast

A North American plant with small yellow flowers used to make yellow dye

9.2

A large gray bird that catches insects and lives in the southeastern United States and Caribbean

9.6

A small mouse-like animal with gray fur that lives in Arctic tundra

9.9

A fern that grows on rocks or trees with grey rough undersides

7.8

A tall tree with leaves green on top and gray underneath

How Grey

to get grey hair
  • UK
3 2.8
to gray
  • US
3 1.8

Surface Forms

gray infinitive
grayed past
greyed past
grayed past participle
greyed past participle
greying present participle
grays third person singular
greys third person singular

Etymology

The verb gray comes from the color word and simply means 'to become gray', especially for hair or things that fade, which is why we say hair 'grays' as people grow older or pictures 'gray' with time.