paprika

noun

pa·​pri·​ka pə-ˈprē-kə 

pa-

: a usually mild red seasoning consisting of the dried finely ground pods of various sweet peppers

also : a sweet pepper used for making paprika

Examples of paprika in a Sentence

tomato sauce made with garlic, paprika, and pepper

Recent Examples on the Web

Bring milk, butter, kosher salt, paprika, and cayenne pepper to a rolling boil in a small saucepan over medium, stirring occasionally. —Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 24 Oct. 2025

This soup is inspired by sopa de ajo, Spanish garlic soup, which features a broth flavored with generous amounts of garlic and paprika. —The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Oct. 2025

Drizzle the pumpkin seeds with olive oil, then toss them with spices of your choice, such as turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, or paprika. —Jillian Kubala, Health, 14 Oct. 2025

In its Frito-Lay food labs and test kitchens in Plano, Texas, PepsiCo is experimenting with ingredients like paprika and turmeric to mimic the bright reds and oranges in products like Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Coleman said. —Dave Smith, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Hungarian, from Serbian & Croatian, from papar ground pepper, ultimately from Latin piper — more at pepper

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for paprika

• arnica
• carica
• rebekah
• turcica
• chica

Kids Definition

paprika

noun

pa·​pri·​ka pə-ˈprē-kə 

pa-

: a mild red spice consisting of the dried finely ground fruit of various cultivated sweet peppers