pepper

¹pep·per

noun \ˈpe-pər\

Definition of PEPPER

1

a : either of two pungent products from the fruit of an Indian plant (Piper nigrum) that are used chiefly as condiments: (1) : black pepper (2) : white pepper

b : any of several products similar to pepper that are obtained from plants of the same genus <cubeb pepper>

c : any of various pungent condiments of plants unrelated to the pepper <Szechuan pepper>

2

: any of a genus (Piper of the family Piperaceae, the pepper family) of tropical mostly jointed climbing shrubs with aromatic leaves; especially : a woody vine (P. nigrum) with spicate flowers that is widely cultivated in the tropics for its red berries from which black pepper and white pepper are prepared

3

a : capsicum 1; especially : one (Capsicum annuum) whose fruits are hot peppers or sweet peppers

b : the hollow fruit of a pepper that is usually green when unripe and red or yellow when ripe

— pepper adjective

Origin of PEPPER

Middle English peper, from Old English pipor, from Latin piper, from Greek peperi

First Known Use: before 12th century

Rhymes with PEPPER

leper, stepper

²pepper

transitive verb

pep·peredpep·per·ing \ˈpe-p(ə-)riŋ\

Definition of PEPPER

1

: to hit with or as if with rapid repeated blows

2

a : to sprinkle or season with pepper

b : to shower with or as if with shot or other missiles

3

: to sprinkle or cover as if with pepper <peppered the report with statistics> <a face peppered with freckles>

— pep·per·er \-pər-ər\ noun

Examples of PEPPER

1. You need to pepper the stew more.
2. <pepper the costume with flecks of glitter>

First Known Use of PEPPER

circa 1500

Related to PEPPER

Synonyms

bestrew, dot, scatter, sow, spot, spray, sprinkle, strew

Related Words

blanket, drizzle, dust; stud; dapple, fleck, speckle, stipple; bespatter, spatter

³pepper

noun

Definition of PEPPER

: a baseball practice or warm-up game in which usually several fielders toss the ball a short distance to a single batter who hits it back

Origin of PEPPER

probably from ²pep + ²-er

First Known Use: 1943

pep·per

noun \ˈpep-ər\   (Medical Dictionary)

Medical Definition of PEPPER

1

a : a woody Indian vine of the genus Piper (P. nigrum) that is widely cultivated in the tropics for its red berries from which black pepper and white pepper are prepared b (1) : black pepper (2) : white pepper

2

: capsicum 2

pepper

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Red peppers (Capsicum annuum) from which paprika is made—G.R. Roberts

Any of many plants in the genus Capsicum of the nightshade family, notably C. annuum, C. frutescens, and C. boccatum, native to Central and South America and cultivated extensively throughout tropical Asia and the equatorial New World for their edible, pungent fruits. Red, green, and yellow mild bell or sweet peppers, rich in vitamins A and C, are used in seasoning and as a vegetable food. The pungency of hot peppers, including tabasco, chili, and cayenne peppers, comes from the compound capsaicin in the internal partitions of the fruit. The spice black pepper comes from an unrelated plant.

Variants of PEPPER

pepper or garden pepper