ingrain
ingrain Lexical Profile
ingrain Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To firmly fix or establish a habit, belief, or attitude in a person or culture so that it is difficult to change.
"Her parents worked hard to ingrain a strong sense of responsibility in their children."
To dye a raw fiber or yarn deeply in the grain before it is manufactured, or to work dirt or pigment deeply into the pores or fibers of a surface.
"Years of working in the coal mine had begun to ingrain fine soot into the creases of his hands."
• adjective
Dyed in the fiber or yarn before being woven or manufactured; woven from pre-dyed yarn.
"The historic parlor was furnished with an authentic 19th-century ingrain carpet."
Deeply rooted or firmly fixed in a person's nature or character; ingrained.
"He had an ingrain skepticism toward sudden financial schemes."
• noun
Yarn, wool, or fabric that has been dyed with fast colors before weaving or manufacturing, or a reversible flat-woven carpet made from such yarn.
"The museum curator carefully restored the faded Victorian ingrain."
Word Nuance & Usage
As a verb, 'ingrain' (sometimes spelled 'engrain') is most frequently encountered in its past participle form, 'ingrained', to describe deeply established habits or beliefs.
• Rhymes for ingrain
Word Origin & Etymology
From the Middle English phrase 'in graine', meaning dyed in scarlet or fast dye (originally made from the dried bodies of kermes insects, which were mistaken for seeds or grains); the sense later shifted by association with the 'grain' or fiber of wood.