salty

1 of 2

adjective

saltier; saltiest
1
a
: of, seasoned with, or containing salt
salty foods
b
: being, inducing, or marked by the one of the five basic taste sensations that is suggestive of seawater compare bitter entry 1 sense 1a, sour entry 1 sense 1, sweet entry 1 sense 1, umami entry 2
2
: smacking of the sea or nautical life
3
a
b
: earthy, crude
salty language
4
informal : feeling or showing resentment towards a person or situation : bitter
I completely forgot about our date and left my girlfriend waiting at the restaurant for over an hour. Now she's all salty.Nicole Lane
They made me shave my beard and cover up my tattoos, which I was a little salty about.Jon Niccum
saltily adverb
saltiness noun

salty

2 of 2

noun

: the taste sensation that is suggestive of seawater compare bitter entry 2 sense 1b, sour entry 2 sense 1b, sweet entry 3 sense 2, umami entry 1

Examples of salty in a Sentence

Adjective I think the soup tastes salty. salty sea water is safe to swim in, but you really shouldn't swallow it
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Foxx’s salty reading of Bunker-style bigotry struck a chord, and the show had a healthy six-season run. Chris Morris, Variety, 6 Dec. 2023 One forkful might unearth a nugget of pork — salty, garlicky, subtly smoky — that has become electrified with pique. Tim Carman, Washington Post, 5 Dec. 2023 Cooked bacon: Chopped and mixed in for a salty, meaty bite. Joy Howard, Southern Living, 5 Dec. 2023 On salumi plates at restaurants like Lodi in Rockefeller Center, mortadella balances out the saltier, drier and darker meats like prosciutto and culatello with its silky texture and pastel color scheme. Julia Moskin, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023 The highly salty underground brine corrodes equipment, an expensive challenge to resolve. Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2023 In blunter terms, paraphrasing a saltier expression, mess around and find out. Democrats should have learned that lesson from the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, which created the independent counsel. The Editors, National Review, 21 Nov. 2023 Top the blondies with flaky sea salt for a salty pop to contrast the sweetness. Emily Nabors Hall, Southern Living, 24 Nov. 2023 Some individuals also tend to be salty sweaters—meaning their sweat often tastes salty, stings their eyes, or feels gritty on their skin—and require more sodium to rehydrate after exercise. Rebecca Jaspan, Mph, Rd, Health, 21 Nov. 2023
Noun
Start with a pinch and add more as needed, but stop before your drink starts tasting outright salty. Sam Stone, Bon Appétit, 17 Aug. 2023 So add a little salty to all of your Easter sweets to keep with the lost tradition. Andrea Wurzburger, Peoplemag, 7 Apr. 2023 The Ravenous Pig Geisler describes the Rav Pig’s pretzel as salty-sweet. Amy Drew Thompson, Orlando Sentinel, 7 Apr. 2023 Again, think about textures and flavors when adding the salty. Jais Tollette, USA TODAY, 7 Dec. 2022 The sweet accentuated the salty. Ben Cohen, WSJ, 27 Oct. 2022 It's got the salty from the fish sauce too. Gina Loveless, Men's Health, 3 May 2022 Her hair is long and blond and looks summer-camp salty. Amy Larocca, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2022 Sometimes, bur is split in half, the sambuus is placed inside and they are eaten together in a sweet-and-salty combo. Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2021 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'salty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1912, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of salty was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near salty

Cite this Entry

“Salty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/salty. Accessed 11 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

salty

adjective
saltier; saltiest
1
: seasoned with or containing salt : tasting of or like salt
2
: having the flavor of or suggesting the sea or things related to the sea
3
: racy entry 1 sense 2
a salty remark
saltiness noun

Medical Definition

salty

adjective
saltier; saltiest
: of, seasoned with, or containing salt
saltiness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on salty

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