hot pepper

noun

Updated on: 16 Apr 2018

Definition of hot pepper

: 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

See hot pepper defined for kids

Recent Examples of hot pepper from the Web

While those side effects may not be uncommon after consuming ultra-hot peppers, things quickly escalated.

— laignee barron, Time, "A Competitive Eater Suffered a Rare 'Thunderclap' Headache Brought on by the World's Hottest Chili Pepper," 10 Apr. 2018
The couple's channel, which is still live on YouTube, features prank videos including one where Perez gets Ruiz to eat a sandwich filled with hot peppers.

— brett molina, USA TODAY, "Woman jailed for fatally shooting boyfriend in botched YouTube stunt," 15 Mar. 2018
By contrast, the Ghost Pepper, perhaps the most famous of the super hot peppers, ranks at 1,041,427 Scoville heat units.

— craig hlavaty, Houston Chronicle, "Feeling the burn at Casian Crawfish," 21 Mar. 2018
And in Peru, chefs like Gaston Acurio and Virgilio Martinez are promoting native plant species and traditional farming as part of their high-end gastronomy, with a focus on native potato, hot pepper, and corn varieties.

— kiona n. smith, Ars Technica, "Pre-Columbian people spread fruit species across Latin America," 13 Mar. 2018
Chef Steven Satterfield divulges his grandmother's recipes for a family specialty, hot pepper vinegar.

— steven satterfield, Country Living, "Hot Pepper Vinegar," 1 Feb. 2011
If Sean Miller sweats through his shirt ... eat a hot pepper.

— extra mustard, SI.com, "The 2018 NCAA Tournament Eating Game," 15 Mar. 2018
The craft distillery has added ingredients to its aquavits such as Indonesian hot peppers, smoked bacon and even the jawbone from an Angus oxen.

— jason wilson, New York Times, "Jump-Starting the Aquavit Renaissance," 13 Mar. 2018
For a quarter-century, Amara and Isata Sumah have been serving up jollof rice, hot pepper soup and other West African dishes from their eatery in Northwest Washington D.C.

— Washington Post, "American Dreamers: Why immigrants start so many businesses," 26 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hot pepper.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.