graft

Everyday

1. A graft is a piece of skin, bone or other body tissue moved by a surgeon to repair another part of the body. tree →
2. A graft is also a cut piece of a plant joined onto another plant so they grow together. tree →
3. (UK, Australia, informal) Graft is hard work. tree →
4. (US) Graft is dishonest use of power to get money, like a bribe. tree →
5. As a verb, to graft means to join a plant or tissue onto another, or (UK informal) to work hard. tree →

In the lessons

In science, grafting lets gardeners grow a tasty apple branch on a strong root; most fruit trees are grafted. In medicine, a skin graft helps burns heal. In UK and Australian everyday talk, «hard graft» praises someone's effort. In US news, graft means corruption by officials.

Examples

• The surgeon used a skin graft to cover the burn. tree →
• Grandad grafted a pear branch onto the old tree. tree →
• Most apple trees are grown by grafting. tree →
• (UK) It took a lot of hard graft to build the shed. tree →
• (UK) He's a real grafter; he never stops working. tree →
• (US) The mayor went to prison for graft. tree →
• (Australia) Winning the cup took years of graft. tree →
• The bone graft helped her broken leg heal. tree →

Note

Be careful: in British and Australian English «graft» is a good thing (hard work), but in American English it is a bad thing (corruption). A person who works hard is a «grafter» (UK).