Wheaten describes something made from wheat or having the pale golden-brown color of wheat. A wheaten loaf of bread gets its light tan shade from wheat flour, quite different from the darker color of rye or pumpernickel bread.

The word appears most often when people want to specify that something contains wheat rather than other grains. A baker might advertise wheaten biscuits to distinguish them from oatmeal ones. In Ireland, wheaten bread refers specifically to a traditional type of brown bread made with whole wheat flour.

You might also hear wheaten used to describe colors, especially in nature. A dog with a wheaten coat has fur the soft golden color of wheat stalks ready for harvest. The Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier, for instance, gets its name from its distinctive wheat-colored fur. Someone might describe a field at sunset as having a wheaten glow when the light turns everything that warm, golden shade.