Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Rye \Rye\, n. [OE. rie, reie, AS. ryge; akin to Icel. rugr, Sw.
   r[*a]g, Dan. rug, D. rogge, OHG. rocco, roggo, G. rocken,
   roggen, Lith. rugei, Russ. roje, and perh. to Gr. 'o`ryza
   rice. Cf. {Rice}.]
   1. (Bot.) A grain yielded by a hardy cereal grass ({Secale
      cereale}), closely allied to wheat; also, the plant
      itself. Rye constitutes a large portion of the breadstuff
      used by man.

   2. A disease in a hawk. --Ainsworth.

   {Rye grass}, {Italian rye grass}, (Bot.) See under {Grass}.
      See also {Ray grass}, and {Darnel}.

   {Wild rye} (Bot.), any plant of the genus {Elymus}, tall
      grasses with much the appearance of rye.

Source : WordNet®

Secale cereale
     n : hardy annual cereal grass widely cultivated in northern
         Europe where its grain is the chief ingredient of black
         bread and in North America for forage and soil
         improvement [syn: {rye}]