pumpkin spice

noun

variants or less commonly pumpkin pie spice

: a mixture of usually cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and often allspice that is commonly used in pumpkin pie

Pumpkin spice is everywhere, and at this point you simply give in to the pounds you'll potentially gain from all the glorious spreads during the holidays.

—Chris Scott

By mixing in a few simple ingredients with pumpkin—think vanilla yogurt, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice and a sprinkling of graham cracker—you create a velvety pumpkin pie experience in a matter of seconds.

—Erika Chayes Wida

—often used before another noun

It's that time of year again—holiday decorations festoon the lampposts and store windows, the smell of pumpkin spice lattes pervades the air, and the chill of winter has settled in …

—Lee Hutchinson

With sweet potato pie, the same pumpkin pie spice blend … is used along with the pre-baked crust.

—WSOCTV.com

Examples of pumpkin spice in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While 'tis the season for pumpkin spice everything, warming cinnamon and apple, and zesty cranberry, Coca-Cola is going its own way. —Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 3 Nov. 2025

From pumpkin spice to warm bakes that taste like nostalgia, this is the time of year when your kitchen speaks to all of your five senses. —Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025

That enveloping sense of coziness is one reason why Gilmore Girls continues to feel like a communal dreamscape, with scores of fans making it as much of an autumn tradition as Halloween costumes and pumpkin spice lattes. —Mara Reinstein, Architectural Digest, 30 Oct. 2025

That was true even with the seasonal return of pumpkin spice lattes and other fall drinks, leading to a pickup in transactions. —Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 30 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1930, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pumpkin spice

• imprecise
• sacrifice
• advice
• allspice
• concise
• device
• entice
• excise
• fordyce
• precise
• suffice
• dice