variants or less commonly chile or chiefly British chilli
plural chilies also chiles or chilis or chiefly British chillies
1
a
or chili pepper : a hot pepper of any of a group of cultivars (Capsicum annuum annuum group longum) noted for their pungency
b
chiefly British chilli : a pepper whether hot or sweet
2
a
: a thick sauce of meat and chilies
liked to cover her spaghetti with red chili
b
: chili con carne
a bowl of chili
also : a similar dish made without beef
vegetarian chili
seafood chili

Examples of chili in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Additionally, soup, chili and hot dogs are on its menu, which also include shakes and different sundaes, such as the banana split and the turtle sundae. Cathy Kozlowicz, Journal Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2024 Add lentils, veggies, and chili crisp to the bowl and dress with your favorite vinaigrette. Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2024 Chef Dipika Singh joins Rosenthal at his table for five-star comfort food, such as pao (a small roll made with potato), which is spiced with curry leaves, coriander, mustard seeds, turmeric and chili. Laura Manske, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Some of the flavors have a kick, like the chocolate chili or mango jalapeño, but the cinnamon wild berry has less spice. Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 27 Feb. 2024 The restaurant’s dosas are the length of a child’s arm and served traditional or fusion-style with fillings like avocado, chili cheese and golden corn. John Metcalfe, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024 Journey to the Dumpling With two locations in the Sacramento region, Journey to the Dumpling offers customers a selection of Chinese cuisine, including salt-and-pepper spare ribs, chili wontons and xiaolongbao. Angela Rodriguez, Sacramento Bee, 24 Feb. 2024 Order it on a chili burger or on some chili cheese fries. Keith Pandolfi, The Enquirer, 23 Feb. 2024 Peanut Butter Peanut butter goes on sandwiches and even burgers, so why not chili? The Courier-Journal, 23 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chili.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Spanish chile, from Nahuatl chīlli

First Known Use

1604, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of chili was in 1604

Dictionary Entries Near chili

Cite this Entry

“Chili.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chili. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

chili

noun
variants also chile or chilli
ˈchil-ē
plural chilies also chiles or chilis or chillies

Geographical Definition

Chili

geographical name

former, especially British name for Chile or for the once poorly defined Andes border region between Chile and Argentina

More from Merriam-Webster on chili

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!