Word
Definitions
01breakfast food
A1 · Beginner Uncountable noun Cooking
n. a food made from grain that you usually eat with milk in the morning.
n. a processed breakfast food made from roasted or toasted grain, typically served with milk.
“I usually have a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice for breakfast.”
“The supermarket aisle was packed with dozens of different cereals, most of them marketed heavily toward children with bright packaging and high sugar content.”
Usage
Usually uncountable when referring to the food in general, but countable when referring to specific brands or types.
Synonyms
02grain plants
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun Science
n. plants like wheat, rice, or corn that are grown for their seeds.
n. any grass cultivated for its edible grain, such as wheat, oats, or maize.
“The farmer grows different cereals like barley and wheat on his land.”
“Global food security depends heavily on the stable production of major cereals, which provide the primary caloric intake for much of the world's population.”
Usage
Often used in plural form when discussing agricultural production.
03relating to grain
B2 · Upper Intermediate Academic
adj. related to or made from grain.
adj. pertaining to or consisting of grain or the plants that produce it.
“The factory produces various cereal products for the local market.”
“The research paper examined the impact of climate change on cereal yields across the sub-Saharan region.”
Usage
Usually placed before a noun.
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “cereal” in context.
Etymology
Borrowed from French céréale (“having to do with cereal”), from Latin Cerealis (“of or relating to Ceres”), from Ceres (“Roman goddess of agriculture”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- (“grow”), from which also Latin sincerus (English sincere) and Latin crēscō (“grow”) (English crescent).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Related words
Idioms
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.A1 MoversIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.2.0–3.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 1.0–1.50–23TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.120–224
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- A1 · Beginner
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/cereal
「カタカナ語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0
‘외래어’ data: 한국어기초사전 (국립국어원), CC BY-SA 2.0 KR