Grain vs. Wheat: Know the Difference
By Shumaila Saeed || Published on January 14, 2024
Grain refers to the small, hard seeds of cereal plants, including wheat, while wheat is a specific type of grain known for its role in flour production.
Key Differences
Grain encompasses the seeds of various cereal plants like wheat, barley, and rice, used for food. It is a broad term that includes many types of cereals. Wheat, on the other hand, specifically refers to a type of grain known for its importance in producing bread, pasta, and other foods.
Shumaila Saeed
Jan 14, 2024
The term grain can also imply the texture or smallest unit of a substance, like wood grain or sand grain. Conversely, wheat is exclusively agricultural, denoting a particular cereal crop with long stalks and kernels that are ground to make flour.
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Jan 14, 2024
Grain is integral in diverse global diets, including varieties like corn, rice, and oats, each with unique nutritional profiles and uses. Wheat is distinguished by its gluten content, making it ideal for bread-making due to its ability to rise.
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Jan 14, 2024
In the industrial context, grain refers to bulk goods, especially in agriculture and food production. Wheat specifically signifies a major commodity traded globally, critical in many economies and cultures.
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Jan 14, 2024
From a nutritional standpoint, grains provide carbohydrates, fiber, and some protein. Wheat, especially in its whole form, offers vitamins, minerals, and fiber, but its refined version is less nutritious.
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Jan 14, 2024
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Comparison Chart
Definition
Small, hard seeds of cereal plants.
A specific type of grain used for flour.
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Jan 14, 2024
Varieties
Includes wheat, rice, corn, barley, etc.
A singular type, with variants like durum.
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Jan 14, 2024
Uses
Food, industrial products, animal feed.
Mainly flour for bread, pasta, pastries.
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Jan 14, 2024
Nutritional Content
Varies by type; carbs, fiber, proteins.
High in gluten, carbs; whole wheat is fibrous.
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Jan 14, 2024
Global Significance
Diverse, staple foods in many cultures.
Major crop, essential in Western diets.
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Jan 14, 2024
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Grain and Wheat Definitions
Grain
The small, hard seeds of cereal plants.
The farmer harvested a large quantity of grain this season.
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Dec 28, 2023
Wheat
A cereal plant cultivated for its grain, used in making flour.
The fields of golden wheat swayed gently in the breeze.
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Dec 28, 2023
Grain
The texture or pattern in materials like wood or leather.
The grain of the leather gave the handbag a unique look.
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Dec 28, 2023
Wheat
A major agricultural commodity, traded globally.
The country's economy relies heavily on wheat exports.
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Dec 28, 2023
Grain
A unit of measurement in weight, especially for precious stones.
The diamond was weighed in grains to determine its value.
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Dec 28, 2023
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Wheat
A source of gluten, essential for bread making.
Wheat flour is preferred for baking bread due to its gluten content.
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Dec 28, 2023
Grain
The direction or texture of muscle fibers or wood.
The carpenter cut the wood against the grain for a smoother finish.
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Dec 28, 2023
Wheat
A symbol of agriculture and fertility in various cultures.
Wheat is often depicted in art as a symbol of abundance.
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Dec 28, 2023
Grain
A small, dry, one-seeded fruit of a cereal grass, having the fruit and the seed walls united
A single grain of wheat.
Gleaned the grains from the ground one at a time. Also called caryopsis.
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Wheat
Any of various annual cereal grasses of the genus Triticum of the Mediterranean region and southwest Asia, especially T. aestivum, widely cultivated in temperate regions in many varieties for its commercially important edible grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The fruits of cereal grasses especially after having been harvested, considered as a group
The grain was stored in a silo.
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Wheat
The grain of any of these grasses, ground to produce flour used in breads, pasta, and other foods.
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Wheat
(countable) Any of several cereal grains, of the genus Triticum, that yields flour as used in bakery.
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Grain
A relatively small discrete particulate or crystalline mass
A grain of sand.
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Grain
A small amount or the smallest amount possible
Hasn't a grain of sense.
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Dec 27, 2023
Wheat
A cereal grass (Triticum vulgare) and its grain, which furnishes a white flour for bread, and, next to rice, is the grain most largely used by the human race.
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Dec 27, 2023
Wheat
Annual or biennial grass having erect flower spikes and light brown grains
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Grain
Abbr. gr. A unit of weight in the US Customary System, an avoirdupois unit equal to 0.002285 ounce (0.065 gram).
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Dec 27, 2023
Wheat
Grains of common wheat; sometimes cooked whole or cracked as cereal; usually ground into flour
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The markings, pattern, or texture of the fibrous tissue in wood
Cherry wood has a fine grain.
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Wheat
The grain of the wheat plant.
They stored the harvested wheat in large silos for the winter.
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Dec 28, 2023
Grain
The side of a hide or piece of leather from which the hair or fur has been removed.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The pattern produced, as in stone, by the arrangement of particulate constituents.
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Grain
The relative size of the particles composing a substance or pattern
A coarse grain.
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Grain
A painted, stamped, or printed design that imitates the pattern found in wood, leather, or stone.
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Grain
Basic temperament or nature; disposition
It goes against my grain to ask for help.
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Grain
An essential quality or characteristic
"Toughness as a virtue ... is, needless to say, fully embedded in the American grain" (Benjamin DeMott).
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Grain
To paint, stamp, or print with a design imitating the grain of wood, leather, or stone.
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Grain
(uncountable) The harvested seeds of various grass food crops eg: wheat, corn, barley.
We stored a thousand tons of grain for the winter.
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Grain
(uncountable) Similar seeds from any food crop, e.g., buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa.
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Grain
(countable) A single seed of grass food crops.
A grain of wheat
Grains of oat
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Grain
The crops from which grain is harvested.
The fields were planted with grain.
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Grain
(uncountable) A linear texture of a material or surface.
Cut along the grain of the wood.
He doesn't like to shave against the grain.
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Grain
(countable) A single particle of a substance.
A grain of sand
A grain of salt
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Grain
(countable) Any of various small units of mass originally notionally based on grain's weight, variously standardized at different places and times, including
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The English grain of 5760 troy pound or 7000 pound avoirdupois, now exactly 64.79891 mg.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The metric, carat, or pearl grain of 4 carat used for measuring precious stones and pearls, now exactly 50 mg.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
(historical) The French grain of 9216 livre, equivalent to 53.11 mg at metricization and equal to exactly 54.25 mg from 1812–1839 as part of the mesures usuelles.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
Any of various small units of length originally notionally based on a grain's width, variously standardized at different places and times.
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Grain
The carat grain of 4 carat as a measure of gold purity, creating a 96-point scale between 0% and 100% purity.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
(materials) A region within a material having a single crystal structure or direction.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
(rocketry) The solid piece of fuel in an individual solid-fuel rocket engine.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
A reddish dye made from the coccus insect, or kermes; hence, a red color of any tint or hue, as crimson, scarlet, etc.; sometimes used by the poets as equivalent to Tyrian purple.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
(in the plural) The remains of grain, etc., after brewing or distillation; hence, any residuum. Also called draff.
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Grain
(botany) A rounded prominence on the back of a sepal, as in the common dock.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
Visual texture in processed photographic film due to the presence of small particles of a metallic silver, or dye clouds, developed from silver halide that have received enough photons.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
An iron fish spear or harpoon, with a number of points half-barbed inwardly.
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Grain
(intransitive) To form grains, or to assume a granular form, as the result of crystallization; to granulate.
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Grain
To texture a surface in imitation of the grain of a substance such as wood.
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Grain
To take the hair off (skins); to soften and raise the grain of (leather, etc.).
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Grain
To form grains, or to assume a granular form, as the result of crystallization; to granulate.
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Grain
A single small hard seed; a kernel, especially of those plants, like wheat, whose seeds are used for food.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The fruit of certain grasses which furnish the chief food of man, as corn, wheat, rye, oats, etc., or the plants themselves; - used collectively.
Storehouses crammed with grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
Any small, hard particle, as of sand, sugar, salt, etc.; hence, any minute portion or particle; as, a grain of gunpowder, of pollen, of starch, of sense, of wit, etc.
I . . . with a grain of manhood well resolved.
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Grain
The unit of the English system of weights; - so called because considered equal to the average of grains taken from the middle of the ears of wheat. 7,000 grains constitute the pound avoirdupois, and 5,760 grains the pound troy. A grain is equal to .0648 gram. See Gram.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
A reddish dye made from the coccus insect, or kermes; hence, a red color of any tint or hue, as crimson, scarlet, etc.; sometimes used by the poets as equivalent to Tyrian purple.
All in a robe of darkest grain.
Doing as the dyers do, who, having first dipped their silks in colors of less value, then give' them the last tincture of crimson in grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The composite particles of any substance; that arrangement of the particles of any body which determines its comparative roughness or hardness; texture; as, marble, sugar, sandstone, etc., of fine grain.
Hard box, and linden of a softer grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The direction, arrangement, or appearance of the fibers in wood, or of the strata in stone, slate, etc.
Knots, by the conflux of meeting sap,Infect the sound pine and divert his grainTortive and errant from his course of growth.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The fiber which forms the substance of wood or of any fibrous material.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The remains of grain, etc., after brewing or distillation; hence, any residuum. Also called draff.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
Temper; natural disposition; inclination.
Brothers . . . not united in grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
A sort of spice, the grain of paradise.
He cheweth grain and licorice,To smellen sweet.
The red roses flush up in her cheeks . . . Likce crimson dyed in grain.
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
Dry seedlike fruit produced by the cereal grasses: e.g. wheat, barley, Indian corn
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
The direction or texture of fibers found in wood or leather or stone or in a woven fabric;
Saw the board across the grain
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Dec 27, 2023
Grain
A single particle or smallest unit of something.
He examined the grain of the wood to determine its quality.
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Dec 28, 2023
Repeatedly Asked Queries
What is wheat?
Wheat is a type of grain known for its role in flour production.
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Jan 14, 2024
Can grain be used for animal feed?
Yes, some grains are used as animal feed.
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Jan 14, 2024
What's the difference in nutrition between grain and wheat?
Nutritional content varies; wheat is high in gluten and carbohydrates.
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Jan 14, 2024
Can wheat be non-gluten?
Wheat naturally contains gluten; non-gluten options are other grains.
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How is grain harvested?
Grain is harvested using various methods, depending on the type and location.
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Jan 14, 2024
What's the primary use of grain?
Grains are mainly used for food, either directly or processed.
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Jan 14, 2024
Why is wheat important in diet?
Wheat is a staple in many diets, especially for its use in bread and pasta.
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Jan 14, 2024
Does wheat have different varieties?
Yes, there are various types of wheat, like durum and whole wheat.
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Jan 14, 2024
Is wheat a global commodity?
Yes, wheat is traded globally and is a key agricultural commodity.
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Jan 14, 2024
Can wheat cause allergies?
Yes, wheat can cause allergies, particularly due to its gluten content.
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Jan 14, 2024
Is wheat good for health?
Wheat, especially whole wheat, can be nutritious, but it contains gluten.
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Jan 14, 2024
Can grain be refined?
Yes, grains like wheat can be refined, though this may reduce their nutritional value.
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Jan 14, 2024
Is grain essential in a balanced diet?
Grains, as a source of carbohydrates and fiber, are important in a balanced diet.
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Jan 14, 2024
What's a common feature of all grains?
Grains typically provide carbohydrates and can be ground into flour.
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Jan 14, 2024
What is whole grain?
Whole grain includes all parts of the grain kernel, providing more nutrients.
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How does the cultivation of wheat impact the environment?
Wheat cultivation can have environmental impacts, like water usage and land use.
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About Author
Written by
Shumaila SaeedShumaila Saeed, an expert content creator with 6 years of experience, specializes in distilling complex topics into easily digestible comparisons, shining a light on the nuances that both inform and educate readers with clarity and accuracy.
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