pepper

1 of 3

noun (1)

pep·​per ˈpe-pər 

1

a

: either of two pungent products from the fruit of an Indian plant (Piper nigrum) that are used chiefly as condiments:

(1)

: black pepper

(2)

: white pepper

b

: any of several products similar to pepper that are obtained from plants of the same genus

cubeb pepper

c

: any of various pungent condiments of plants unrelated to the pepper

Szechuan pepper

2

: any of a genus (Piper of the family Piperaceae, the pepper family) of tropical mostly jointed climbing shrubs with aromatic leaves

especially : a woody vine (P. nigrum) with spicate flowers that is widely cultivated in the tropics for its red berries from which black pepper and white pepper are prepared

3

a

: capsicum sense 1

especially : one (Capsicum annuum) whose fruits are hot peppers or sweet peppers

b

: the hollow fruit of a pepper that is usually green when unripe and red or yellow when ripe

pepper adjective

pepper

2 of 3

verb

peppered; peppering ˈpe-p(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

a

: to sprinkle or season with pepper

b

: to shower with or as if with shot or other missiles

2

: to hit with or as if with rapid repeated blows

3

: to sprinkle or cover as if with pepper

peppered the report with statistics

a face peppered with freckles

pepperer

ˈpe-pər-ər 

noun

pepper

3 of 3

noun (2)

: a baseball practice or warm-up game in which usually several fielders toss the ball a short distance to a single batter who hits it back

Synonyms

Verb

• bestrew
• dot
• scatter
• sow
• spot
• spray
• sprinkle
• strew

Examples of pepper in a Sentence

Verb

You need to pepper the stew more.

pepper the costume with flecks of glitter

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Ingredients 1 medium butternut squash 1 Tbsp. olive or canola oil Seasoning if desired, or salt and pepper Directions Preheat the oven to 400°F. —Carrie Honaker, Southern Living, 21 Sep. 2023

Season tomatoes with salt, pepper and herbs. Fold the edges of the pastry over onto the tomatoes, slightly overlapping each fold. —Caron Golden, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Sep. 2023

Postino’s vibe is funky and casual, so take a friend or colleague who doesn’t mind sharing food, then order a bruschetta board with toppings like mushroom and mascarpone (my favorite); sweet and spicy pepper jam and goat cheese; or salmon and pesto. —Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 19 Sep. 2023

In late summer, the mezze spoke to the season with runner beans, charred on the grill and sprinkled with Aleppo pepper. —Tom Sietsema, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2023

According to Born, Utah is uniquely positioned to be a leader in hot sauce because of the ideal environment here to grow peppers. —The Salt Lake Tribune, 15 Sep. 2023

Add the chicken and onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is just translucent and the chicken has lightly browned and isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pot, about 10 minutes. —Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 15 Sep. 2023

Let marinate for 30 minutes before serving on whole-grain toast. Quarter and toss mushrooms with balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper. —Nick Blackmer, Verywell Health, 7 Sep. 2023

To get started, thoroughly pat the chicken pieces dry with paper towels, then coat them with oil and season generously with salt and pepper. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 19 Sep. 2023

Verb

The story outlines several fabrications peppered throughout Minhaj’s work, often in service of describing experiences of discrimination and threats of violence for speaking truth to power. —Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2023

As the leaders toured a Soyuz-2 space rocket launch facility, Kim peppered a Russian space official with questions about the rockets. —Kim Tong-Hyung and Dasha Litvinova, Chicago Tribune, 13 Sep. 2023

Fain, a fiery leader who won the UAW presidency in the union’s first direct election this spring, peppered his address with biblical references and barbs against billionaires. —Jeanne Whalen, Washington Post, 13 Sep. 2023

Read full article Supported by his wife, Thomas Rosa, 62, rested gently on his cane and offered reporters a wan smile through the morning drizzle that peppered the Superior Court courtyard late Monday morning. —Ivy Scott, BostonGlobe.com, 11 Sep. 2023

Other pop tracks pepper the movie, many of them heard in a futuristic disco specializing in retro soirées hopping from the 60s to the 70s to the 80s (a device used in another Gallic adaptation of the James story, simply called The Beast in the Jungle, currently out in French theaters). —Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2023

Among these are deforming women by peppering their faces, breasts and genitals with birdshot, poisoning of girls on school campuses, public executions of young men, insidious murders of young women, plus rape and torture of almost 20,000 prisoners. —Lily Moayeri, Spin, 8 Sep. 2023

Carolina Reapers score around 1.7 million Scoville heat units and Naga Viper peppers around 1.4 million. —Aria Bendix, NBC News, 7 Sep. 2023

Just weeks after one of the deadliest crashes in Texas history occurred on Interstate 35W, federal investigators peppered the employees of the company who maintained the roadway with questions. —Zaeem Shaikh, Dallas News, 1 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English peper, from Old English pipor, from Latin piper, from Greek peperi

Noun (2)

probably from pep entry 2 + -er entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun (2)

1943, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing pepper

• black pepper
• bird pepper
• green pepper
• hot pepper
• pepper-and-salt
• ghost pepper
• pepper jack
• pepper jack cheese
• pepper mill
• water pepper
• sweet pepper
• pepper spray
• Philadelphia pepper pot
• pepper shaker
• pepper pot
• banana pepper
• bell pepper
• white pepper
• pepper with
• cayenne pepper
• salt-and-pepper
• red pepper
• chili pepper

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• black pepper
• bird pepper
• green pepper
• hot pepper
• pepper-and-salt
• ghost pepper
• pepper jack
• pepper jack cheese
• pepper mill
• water pepper
• sweet pepper
• pepper spray
• Philadelphia pepper pot
• pepper shaker
• pepper pot
• banana pepper
• bell pepper
• white pepper
• pepper with
• cayenne pepper
• salt-and-pepper
• red pepper
• chili pepper

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Kids Definition

pepper

1 of 2 noun

pep·​per ˈpep-ər 

1

: either of two sharp-tasting products from the fruit of an Indian plant used especially as a seasoning

a

: black pepper

b

: white pepper

2

: a woody vine with rounded leaves and flowers arranged in a spike that is widely cultivated in the tropics for its red berries from which pepper is prepared

3

: any of several products similar to pepper that are obtained from close relatives of the pepper

4

a

: any of a genus of tropical American herbs and shrubs of the nightshade family widely cultivated for their many-seeded fruits that usually have fleshy walls

especially : one whose fruits are hot peppers or sweet peppers

b

: the fruit of a pepper that is usually green when unripe and yellow or red when ripe

pepper adjective

pepper

2 of 2 verb

peppered; peppering ˈpep-(ə-)riŋ 

1

: to sprinkle, cover, or season with or as if with pepper

pepper the stew

a face peppered with freckles

2

: to hit with a shower of blows or objects

Medical Definition

pepper

noun

pep·​per ˈpep-ər 

1

a

: a woody Indian vine of the genus Piper (P. nigrum) that is widely cultivated in the tropics for its red berries from which black pepper and white pepper are prepared

b(1)

: black pepper

(2)

: white pepper

2

: capsicum sense 2