grain of sand

collocation in English

meaningsofgrainandsand

These words are often used together. Click on the links below to explore the meanings. Or,see other collocations withgrain.
grain
noun
uk
/ɡreɪn/us
/ɡreɪn/
a seed or seeds from a plant, especially a plant like a grass such as rice ...
See more atgrain
sand
noun
uk
/sænd/us
/sænd/
a substance that consists of very small grains of rock, found on beaches and ...
See more atsand

(Definition ofgrainandsandfrom theCambridge English Dictionary© Cambridge University Press)

Examplesofgrain of sand

These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
A volcano is a material thing, and so is agrainofsand, but neither of these metabolizes.
From theCambridge English Corpus
It was not merely agrainofsandin machinery which was not thoroughly well lubricated.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
It may be, like thegrainofsandin the oyster, they may become encrusted with some precious material which will make them of great value.
From the
Hansard archive
Example from the Hansard archive. Contains Parliamentary information licensed under theOpen Parliament Licence v3.0
The avalanches are caused when the impact of a newgrainofsandis sufficient to dislodge some group of sand grains.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
The nucleus of a cave pearl is typically very small, such as agrainofsand, but can be larger.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Is the universe just agrainofsandon a huge beach?
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Like holding agrainofsandthat came from halfway around the world.
From
Wikipedia
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The rounds themselves are described as being the size of agrainofsandand are launched through mass accelerator technology at extremely high speeds.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
The batteries entire battery was no larger than agrainofsand.
From
Wikipedia
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An example of this is smart dust, which can be either a camera or a listening device smaller than agrainofsand.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
At the time he was an accountant, his pleasure was to think it was thegrainofsandthat would make all the rails.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
It directed him to a castle, and told him to put agrainofsandin front of its gates.
From
Wikipedia
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Debris in the camera, such as dust or sand, may scratch the film; a singlegrainofsandcan damage a whole roll of film.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
The one jewel that grows, it symbolizes the new member, developing from a tinygrainofsandinto a thing of great value and beauty.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
It is a myth that agrainofsandor grit can cause a pearl to form, as nacre does not adhere to inorganic substances.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
These particles, tinier than agrainofsand, come together to form a human shape.
From
Wikipedia
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The particle might be agrainofsand, organic material, or even a parasite.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
She and a singlegrainofsandare all that remains of the land.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Realizing he can not hold onto even onegrainofsandleads to his final question that all things are a dream.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
Such a particle may be agrainofsand, a pebble, cobble or boulder.
From
Wikipedia
This example is from Wikipedia and may be reused under a CC BY-SA license.
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
Want to learn more?
Go to the definition ofgrain
Go to the definition ofsand
See other collocations withgrain