"How many ears of corn should I get for dinner?"

Dear teachers,

By supplying deficiencies of a quiz concerning the theme "Food Storage Containers" I found it difficult to use the term "ear", which I have to put in a gap of the following sentence.

"How many ears of corn should I get for dinner?"

I know something about "ear" as a vertebrate organ of hearing, as well as a small box in the upper corner of the page in a newspaper or periodical that contains a printed notice. I know even something about "ears" as headphones, or as a seed-bearing spike of a cereal plant such as corns. I remembered about "ear of oat" and "ear of rye", but in this case I was loss for an answer.

Would you be kind enough to explain to me in plain English the plausibility of the sentence above.Could you explain to me the meaning of the following sentence:

"Ears of corn were boiled or roasted over fire."

Thank you in advance for your efforts.

Regards.

V.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by vil

Dear teachers,

By supplying deficiencies of a quiz concerning the theme "Food Storage Containers" I found it difficult to use the term "ear", which I have to put in a gap of the following sentence.

"How many ears of corn should I get for dinner?"

I know something about "ear" as a vertebrate organ of hearing, as well as a small box in the upper corner of the page in a newspaper or periodical that contains a printed notice. I know even something about "ears" as headphones, or as a seed-bearing spike of a cereal plant such as corns. I remembered about "ear of oat" and "ear of rye", but in this case I was loss for an answer.

Would you be kind enough to explain to me in plain English the plausibility of the sentence above.Could you explain to me the meaning of the following sentence:

"Ears of corn were boiled or roasted over fire."

Thank you in advance for your efforts.

Regards.

V.

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Corn is measured in ears. When we go to the market, we usually buy a dozen ears of corn.
It is the same usage as loaf in "a loaf of bread" or slice in "a slice of bread."
It is not always necessary to use "ear" when speaking of corn, when it is obvious that the whole ear is involved. For example, "corn is roasted on the grill" obviously means the whole ear is placed on the grill. You could not do otherwise. When boiling corn, however, you might want to state that "whole ears of corn are boiled," because it's also possible to boil canned corn. Ears of corn are also sometimes called "corn on the cob," and loose kernels of corn can be called "corn off the cob."

Dear cclaff,

Thank you for your prompt reply.

Thank you also for your perspicuous and comprehensively explanation the matter in question.

Owing to you, I know now that 1 dozen ears of corn gives about 2-1/2 cups of cooked kernels. I know also what is grill-roasted corn on the cob, or boiled, microwaved, stewed or grilled in the husk, roasted in foil, and even - what is corn cut from the cob.

Thank you again for your backing.

Regards.

V.