gray 1
— grayly , adv. — grayness , n.
/gray/ , adj., grayer, grayest , n. , v.
adj.
1. of a color between white and black; having a neutral hue.
2. dark, dismal, or gloomy: gray skies.
3. dull, dreary, or monotonous.
4. having gray hair; gray-headed.
5. pertaining to old age; mature.
6. Informal. pertaining to, involving, or composed of older persons: gray households.
7. old or ancient.
8. indeterminate and intermediate in character: The tax audit concentrated on deductions in the gray area between purely personal and purely business expenses.
n.
9. any achromatic color; any color with zero chroma, intermediate between white and black.
10. something of this color.
11. gray material or clothing: to dress in gray.
12. an unbleached and undyed condition.
13. ( often cap. ) a member of the Confederate army in the American Civil War or the army itself. Cf. blue (def. 5).
14. a horse of a gray color.
15. a horse that appears white but is not an albino.
v.t. , v.i.
16. to make or become gray.
Also, grey .
[ bef. 900; ME; OE graeg; c. G grau ]
gray 2
/gray/ , n. Physics.
the SI unit of absorbed dose, equal to the amount of ionizing radiation absorbed when the energy imparted to matter is 1 J/kg. Abbr.: Gy Cf. rad .
[ 1975; named in honor of Louis Harold Gray (1905-65), English radiobiologist ]