I. adjective
also grey ˈgrā
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English grǣg; akin to Old High German grīs, grāo gray
Date: before 12th century
1.
a. : of the color gray
b. : tending toward gray
blue- gray eyes
c. : dull in color
2. : having the hair gray : hoary
3. : clothed in gray
4.
a. : lacking cheer or brightness in mood, outlook, style, or flavor ; also : dismal , gloomy
a gray day
b. : prosaically ordinary : dull , uninteresting
5. : having an intermediate and often vaguely defined position, condition, or character
an ethically gray area
• gray·ly adverb
• gray·ness noun
II. noun
also grey
Date: 13th century
1. : something (as an animal, garment, cloth, or spot) of a gray color
2. : any of a series of neutral colors ranging between black and white
3.
a. : a soldier in the Confederate army during the American Civil War
b. often capitalized : the Confederate army
III. verb
also grey
Date: 14th century
transitive verb
: to make gray
intransitive verb
1. : to become gray
gray ing hair
2. : age ; also : to contain an increasing percentage of older people
IV. noun
Etymology: Louis H. Gray died 1965 British radiobiologist
Date: 1975
: the mks unit of absorbed dose of ionizing radiation equal to an energy of one joule per kilogram of irradiated material — abbreviation Gy