barley

noun

bar·​ley ˈbär-lē How to pronounce barley (audio)
: a cereal grass (genus Hordeum and especially H. vulgare) having the flowers in dense spikes with long awns and three spikelets at each joint of the rachis
also : its seed used especially in malt beverages, breakfast foods, and stock feeds

Examples of barley in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The distillery uses many different barley varietals and cask types to distill and age its whiskey, but the annual Garryana series is based around the use of casks made from Quercus garryana oak, a tree that is native to the Pacific Northwest. — Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 23 Oct. 2026 Using a fine-mesh strainer, remove the barley and set aside to cool slightly in a medium bowl. — ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026 The starting ingredient—wine, apples, rice, malted barley, or sugarcane, for example—helps determine the flavor, as do the fermentation and aging processes. — Emily Saladino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 19 Oct. 2026 Between them, Ukraine and Russia supplied the world with more than half of its sunflower oil, nearly a fifth of its barley and 14% of its wheat in the years leading up to the war, according to the UN. — Jenni Reid, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for barley

Word History

Etymology

Middle English barly, from Old English bærlic of barley; akin to Old English bere barley, Latin far spelt

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of barley was before the 12th century

Phrases Containing barley

Rhymes for barley

See All Rhymes for barley

Browse Nearby Words

Barletta
barley
barleybreak
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Barley.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/barley. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Kids Definition

barley

noun
bar·​ley ˈbär-lē How to pronounce barley (audio)
: a cereal grass with flowers in dense spikes
also : its seed used especially in malt beverages, in foods (as soups and cereals), or as feed for livestock

Medical Definition

barley

noun
bar·​ley ˈbär-lē How to pronounce barley (audio)
: a cereal grass (genus Hordeum, especially H. vulgare) having the flowers in dense spikes with long awns
also : its seed used in malt beverages and in breakfast foods and stock feeds

More from Merriam-Webster on barley

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about barley

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