teaspoon

noun

tea·​spoon ˈtē-ˌspün How to pronounce teaspoon (audio)
-ˈspün
1
: a small spoon that is used especially for eating soft foods and stirring beverages and that holds about one third of a tablespoon
2
: a unit of measure especially in cookery equal to ¹/₆ fluid ounce or ¹/₃ tablespoon (5 milliliters)

Examples of teaspoon in a Sentence

She stirred her coffee with a teaspoon. He measured the salt with a teaspoon. She put a teaspoon of sugar in her coffee.
Recent Examples on the Web At the end of the milking session, the massage therapist handed me the result: less than a teaspoon of custardy-yellow breast milk. Clarissa Wei, The New Yorker, 23 Mar. 2024 Add the mayonnaise, mustard, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper and stir until smooth and creamy. Robin Miller, The Arizona Republic, 21 Mar. 2024 Drizzle the leeks and lemon with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2024 Season with ½ teaspoon salt, pour in the half-and-half and stir loosely together. Emily Weinstein, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2024 Leave a comment View Comments ¼ teaspoon mustard powder 1 tablespoon white miso paste 2 tablespoons sesame oil Instructions 1. Adrienne Cheatham, CNN, 3 Mar. 2024 Add a heaping teaspoon to your warm matcha, lemonade or any smoothie. Kate Donnelly, Forbes, 29 Feb. 2024 The volunteer then places a teaspoon of the starter into a plastic bag to mail back at no charge. Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2024 While skillet heats, sprinkle cut sides of eggplant with ½ teaspoon of the salt. Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

1686, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of teaspoon was in 1686

Dictionary Entries Near teaspoon

Cite this Entry

“Teaspoon.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/teaspoon. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

teaspoon

noun
tea·​spoon ˈtē-ˌspün How to pronounce teaspoon (audio)
-ˈspün
1
: a small spoon used especially for eating soft foods and stirring beverages
2
: a unit of measure used especially in cooking equal to ⅙ fluid ounce or ⅓ tablespoon (about 5 milliliters)

Medical Definition

teaspoon

noun
: a unit of measure equal to ¹/₆ fluid ounce or ¹/₃ tablespoon or 5 milliliters

More from Merriam-Webster on teaspoon

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