English Reference
Idiom idiom

grey matter


Brains; a person's ability to think.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.


SIMPLE

Reading books keeps your grey matter active.

CONTEXTUAL

The puzzle was designed to challenge your grey matter and improve your problem-solving skills.

COMPLEX

Years of studying philosophy had sharpened his grey matter, allowing him to dissect arguments with surgical precision.


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    get grey hair from

    To acquire great frustration, confusion, or anxiousness from (something or someone).

  2. 02

    give someone grey hair

    To give someone great frustration, confusion, or anxiousness.

  3. 03

    gray hat

    A morally ambiguous character; an antihero.

  4. 04

    grey area

    An area intermediate between two mutually exclusive states or categories, where the border between the two is fuzzy or ill-defined.

  5. 05

    grey cells

    Brains; a person's ability to think, especially referring to intelligence.

  6. 06

    grey power

    The collective political, economic, and social influence of senior citizens, especially when they are mobilized by a common interest.

  7. 07

    make matters worse

    To worsen an already difficult situation or unfavourable set of circumstances, typically by acting rashly, foolishly, or incompetently.

  8. 08

    matter at hand

    The current issue, which requires immediate attention.

Last updated August 10, 2026