hot pepper

noun

: any of various small and usually thin-walled capsicum fruits of marked pungency

also : a plant (especially a variant or cultivar of Capsicum annuum and C. frutescens) bearing hot peppers

Examples of hot pepper in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Stir 1 cup marinara sauce, ¼ cup gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste), and 1 tsp. —Chris Morocco, Bon Appetit Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026

Add the brown sugar, chili sauce, cocoa powder, hot pepper, cumin, coriander, cayenne, salt and kidney beans. —The Know, Denver Post, 24 Jan. 2026

Plant a thematic garden Gardening is a perennial of hobby roundups, but for a modern take on an old classic, consider undertaking a very specific kind of gardening, such as carnivorous plants or different types of hot peppers. —The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Jan. 2026

Peppers Mild peppers like bell peppers mature faster than hot peppers, such as ghost peppers, but the seed-starting process is the same for all peppers. —Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1945, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for hot pepper

• leper
• lepper
• stepper

Kids Definition

hot pepper

noun

1

: an often thin-walled and small pepper with a sharp or biting taste

2

: a pepper plant of the nightshade family that bears hot peppers