Grits

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɡɹɪts/

Definitions

1. Coarsely ground dried corn used as a porridge or side dish ; tiny hard particles often found as debris or grit in a substance ; to clench the teeth or face in order to endure or overcome difficulty
2. A dish made from cracked corn kernels cooked until soft ; minute abrasive grains that can irritate or damage ; the act of showing resolve or bracing oneself against hardship
3. A coarse cornmeal preparation eaten as food ; small solid granules that cause scratching or irritation ; to firmly set one's jaw to face a challenge or pain

Etymology: Grits began as a plain word for hulled oats. Old English "grytt" (also "grytta") named the bran-free kernels left after oats were husked, and the same root gave us "grit" in its sense of small hard particles. Over time the word came to denote the coarse, gritty texture of ground grain itself rather than the oats alone. In American English the word narrowed to a specific food: cornmeal coarsely ground and boiled into porridge. Its meaning shifted from the hard particles to the cooked dish made from them, so a word about gravel-like texture ended up naming a breakfast staple across the American South.

Synonyms: polenta, cornmeal, porridge