sand

Very small pieces of rock found on beaches and in deserts, and used for building.

• The sand feels warm.
• We built a castle in the sand.
• There was sand in my shoes after our walk.

Common phrases: wet sand, fine sand, sand castle

A beach or another large area covered with tiny pieces of rock, often used in the plural.

• We walked across the golden sands.
• The tide covered the sands by evening.
• Oil companies work in the tar sands.

Common phrases: sand bank, sand flat, sand deposit

One tiny piece of rock from a beach or desert.

• A single sand fell through the glass.
• Each sand in the hourglass marked another passing instant.
• The poet imagined counting every sand on the shore.

Similar words: grain of sand

Common phrases: single sand, every sand

Time passing, or the time left in someone’s life, imagined as grains falling through a glass.

• The sands of time were running out.
• She watched the sands of his life slowly fall.
• No king can stop the sands of time.

Common phrases: sand of time, last sand

To rub a surface with rough paper to make it smooth or remove old paint.

• Sand the wood before painting it.
• She sanded the table until it felt smooth.
• Have you sanded the rough edges yet?

How to use it: sand something down (Sand the door down before painting it.)

Common phrases: sand something down, sand the wood, sand a floor