Millet, n.

n. [Fr. millet or mil, Pr. mil, It. miglio, Pg. milho, Sp. mijo, Lat. milium, A-S. mil.] (Bot.) (a.) An endogenous plant (Panicum miliaceum), and its grain. It is a native of the East Indies, where it is largely used for food. (b.) A hardy grass of several species of the genus Milium; — called also millet-grass.

German millet, the Letaria Germanica, the seed of which is principally used for cage-birds. Archer. — Indian millet, a plant (Sorghum vulgare), of which the Guinea corn and broom corn are varieties. The stalks are used in the manufacture of whisks and carpet brooms. In the West Indies the grain is used principally by the blacks, and is called negro corn. — Italian millet, a species of grass (Letaria Italica) bearing a very small grain.