grist

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   grain brought to a mill to be ground, or a quantity of grain prepared for grinding

   The miller weighed each farmer's grist before pouring it between the stones.

2. 2
   noun

   material, information, or experience that can be used for a particular purpose

   Every odd encounter became grist for the novelist's next story.

From Old English grist, meaning both the act of grinding and grain for grinding. Its figurative use survives especially in grist for the mill: anything that can be turned to practical advantage, as grain is turned into meal.

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