A rind is the outer covering of fruits like oranges or watermelons. It is usually hard or thick and is often not eaten.
The orange has a thick, bitter rind.
Do not eat the rind of the watermelon.
In cheese making, the rind is the outside part that gets hard or changes color as the cheese ages. Sometimes it can be eaten, sometimes not.
Some cheeses have a brown rind on the outside.
The cheese rind is edible for some types.
Some nuts or seeds have a rind, which is a hard outer layer protecting the seed inside. You usually remove it before eating.
The almond has a thin brown rind.
Remove the rind to get the nut inside.
In zoology, the rind means a thick, tough skin that covers some large animals. It helps protect them from injury or cold.
The elephant’s rough rind protects it from harm.
Whales have a thick rind on their bodies.
A rind can also mean the outer layer covering a tree trunk, which protects the tree. This is similar to bark but often used in a more technical or older sense.
The tree’s rind is rough and brown.
In some trees, the rind peels off in strips.
In cooking, rind can mean the skin or fatty outer layer of meat, like pork rind, which becomes crispy when cooked.
The pork rind is crispy when fried.
Some people love the texture of rind on meat.
Figuratively, rind means the outside of a person or thing that looks hard but covers a softer part inside. It describes someone’s personality or feelings.
He has a hard rind but a kind heart inside.
People often hide their feelings under a tough rind.
