Gray a. [Compar. Grayer superl. Grayest.]  [Written also grey.]
 1. any color of neutral hue between white and black; white mixed with black, as the color of pepper and salt, or of ashes, or of hair whitened by age; sometimes, a dark mixed color; as, the soft gray eye of a dove.
    These gray and dun colors may be also produced by mixing whites and blacks.   --Sir I. Newton.
 2. Gray-haired; gray-headed; of a gray color; hoary.
 3. Old; mature; as, gray experience. -- Ames.
 Gray antimony Min., stibnite.
 Gray buck Zool., the chickara.
 Gray cobalt Min., smaltite.
 Gray copper  Min., tetrahedrite.
 Gray duck Zool., the gadwall; also applied to the female mallard.
 Gray falcon Zool. the peregrine falcon.
 Gray Friar. See Franciscan, and Friar.
 Gray hen Zool., the female of the blackcock or black grouse. See Heath grouse.
 Gray mill or Gray millet Bot., a name of several plants of the genus Lithospermum; gromwell.
 Gray mullet Zool. any one of the numerous species of the genus Mugil, or family Mugilidæ, found both in the Old World and America; as the European species (Mugilidæ capito, and Mugilidæ auratus), the American striped mullet (Mugilidæ albula), and the white or silver mullet (Mugilidæ Braziliensis). See Mullet.
 Gray owl Zool.,  the European tawny or brown owl (Syrnium aluco). The great gray owl (Ulula cinerea) inhabits arctic America.
 Gray parrot Zool., an African parrot (Psittacus erithacus), very commonly domesticated, and noted for its aptness in learning to talk.  Also called jako.
 Gray pike. Zool. See Sauger.
 Gray snapper Zool., a Florida fish; the sea lawyer. See Snapper.
 Gray snipe Zool., the dowitcher in winter plumage.
 Gray whale Zool., a rather large and swift whale of the northern Pacific (Eschrichtius robustus, formerly Rhachianectes glaucus), having short jaws and no dorsal fin.  It grows to a length of 50 feet (someimes 60 feet).  It was formerly taken in large numbers in the bays of California, and is now rare; -- called also grayback, devilfish, and hardhead.  It lives up to 50 or 60 years and adults weigh from 20 to 40 tons.


 Heath n.
 1. Bot. (a) A low shrub (Erica vulgaris or Calluna vulgaris), with minute evergreen leaves, and handsome clusters of pink flowers.  It is used in Great Britain for brooms, thatch, beds for the poor, and for heating ovens.  It is also called heather, and ling. (b) Also, any species of the genus Erica, of which several are European, and many more are South African, some of great beauty. See Illust. of Heather.
 2. A place overgrown with heath; any cheerless tract of country overgrown with shrubs or coarse herbage.
 Their stately growth, though bare,
 Stands on the blasted heath.   --Milton
 Heath cock Zool., the blackcock. See Heath grouse (below).
 Heath grass Bot., a kind of perennial grass, of the genus Triodia (Triodia decumbens), growing on dry heaths.
 Heath grouse, or  Heath game Zool., a European grouse (Tetrao tetrix), which inhabits heaths; -- called also black game, black grouse, heath poult, heath fowl, moor fowl.  The male is called heath cock, and blackcock; the female, heath hen, and gray hen.
 Heath hen. Zool. See Heath grouse (above).
 Heath pea Bot., a species of bitter vetch (Lathyrus macrorhizus), the tubers of which are eaten, and in Scotland are used to flavor whisky.
 Heath throstle Zool., a European thrush which frequents heaths; the ring ouzel.

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 gray hen
      n : female black grouse [syn: grayhen, heath hen]