grey cells
Brains; a person's ability to think, especially referring to intelligence.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Use your grey cells to solve this puzzle.”
“The math problem was difficult, so I had to use my grey cells to find the right answer.”
“The detective sat quietly in his chair, exercising his grey cells to uncover the truth behind the mysterious crime.”
Derived from grey matter, the term refers to the nervous tissue of the brain and spinal cord.
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Flowery Dell
[Cockney slang]cell
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get grey hair from
To acquire great frustration, confusion, or anxiousness from (something or someone).
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give someone grey hair
To give someone great frustration, confusion, or anxiousness.
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gray hat
A morally ambiguous character; an antihero.
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grey area
An area intermediate between two mutually exclusive states or categories, where the border between the two is fuzzy or ill-defined.
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grey matter
Brains; a person's ability to think.
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grey power
The collective political, economic, and social influence of senior citizens, especially when they are mobilized by a common interest.
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padded cell
A room in a mental hospital lined with padding on the walls, and often a cushioned floor, in order to prevent occupants from injuring themselves.
Last updated August 10, 2026