Ingrain

//ɪŋˈɡɹeɪn// adj, noun, verb

adj, noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An ingrain fabric, such as a carpet.
Verb
  1. 1
    To dye with a fast or lasting colour. transitive
  2. 2
    produce or try to produce a vivid impression of wordnet
  3. 3
    To make (something) deeply part of something else. figuratively, transitive

    "The dirt was deeply ingrained in the carpet."

  4. 4
    thoroughly work in wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Dyed with grain, or kermes. not-comparable
  2. 2
    Dyed before manufacture; said of the material of a textile fabric. not-comparable
  3. 3
    Thoroughly inwrought; forming an essential part of the substance. broadly, figuratively, not-comparable

    "When were such changes ever made in men's natural relations to one another: when was such reconcilement of ingrain differences ever effected!"

Synonyms

All synonyms
impressinstillapply paintassimilatebedbedaub

Example

More examples

"The dirt was deeply ingrained in the carpet."

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English engreynen, from the French phrase en grain; reinforced by the phrase (dyed) in grain. See grain.

Related phrases

ingrain wallpaper

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.