orgeat

noun

or·​geat ˈȯr-ˌzhä(t) 

: a sweet almond-flavored nonalcoholic syrup used as a cocktail ingredient or food flavoring

Examples of orgeat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

With Tahiti as its inspiration, the Vanilla Sky (vanilla vodka, orgeat, pineapple, triple sec and lime) is a creeper. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Feb. 2026

Almond orgeat replaces simple syrup, and a few heavy dashes of Angostura bitters add depth and complexity. —Aly Walansky, Forbes.com, 7 Feb. 2026

The bar pours a full slate of cocktails, including the signature Benin sunset—a blend of premium tequila, grapefruit cream, orgeat syrup, and fresh ginger. —Caitlin Gunther, Travel + Leisure, 25 Dec. 2025

Almost Famous' tropical holiday lineup includes cocktails like a Sugar Plum Mai Tai (rum, lime orgeat, cinnamon syrup and plum wine) and the titular Sippin' Santa (aged demerara rum, Amaro, lemon, orange, nutmeg and ginger). —Bradley Hohulin, IndyStar, 11 Dec. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, going back to Middle French, "syrup made from a decoction of barley," probably borrowed from an Old Occitan predecessor of Occitan ordiat, orjat "orgeat," from Old Occitan ordi, orge "barley" (going back to Latin hordeum) + -at -ate entry 1; Latin hordeum going back to *χorzdei̯om, presumed adjectival derivative from dialectal Indo-European *g^hers-do- or *g^hors-do-, whence also Germanic *gerstōn- "barley," whence Old Saxon & Old High German gersta "barley," Middle Dutch gerste, garste

Note: The hypothetical Old Occitan word is akin to and perhaps modeled on Italian orzata "beverage or infusion made from barley soaked in water, sweet syrup made from germinated barley grains and other ingredients, orgeat"; see note at horchata. — Attempts have been made to link *g^hers-do-/*g^hors-do- with another group of words: Greek krīthḗ "grain of barley," krīthaí "barley," Homeric krî (originally a root noun *krīt^h?), Albanian drithë "cereal, grain," Armenian gari (genitive garwoy) "barley." No single pre-form can unite these words, however, and they all may be borrowed from a pre-Indo-European substratum; compare Basque gari "wheat," perhaps itself a borrowing. In opposition to this hypothesis, *g^hers-do-/*g^hors-do- have been taken as formed from root extensions of a verbal base *ǵ^hers- "bristle, become stiff" (see horror entry 1), a name suggested by the long awns of barley; compare Old English gorst gorse, taken as a transfer of the same etymon to a thorny plant.

First Known Use

1754, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for orgeat

• amit
• athlete
• backseat
• blackfeet
• broadsheet
• browbeat
• buckwheat
• compete
• compleat
• complete
• conceit
• concrete