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The Difference Between Vegetarian, Vegan, and Other Diets
The word vegetarian sprouted up in 1839. Fruitarian ("a person who lives on fruit") ripened by 1893. In 1944, vegetarians who consume no animal or dairy products began calling themselves vegans. Then, in 1993, those who eat fish but no other meat chose pesce, the Italian word for "fish," to create the designation pescatarian. In that same year, meatatarian was served up as a word for those whose diet largely includes meat; that word is rare, however, and is usually used in informal and humorous ways, making it the type of fare not included in our dictionaries. Another fairly recent dietary word is flexitarian, a person who follows a mostly vegetarian diet but occasionally eats meat or fish.
Examples of vegan in a Sentence
Caroline Hughes, Travel + Leisure, 26 Feb. 2026
This pair is sporty yet polished, featuring a sleek, easy-to-clean vegan leather upper, suede accents, and a zigzag racing stripe along the sides.
—Annie Blackman, InStyle, 26 Feb. 2026
Plant proteins may lack some amino acids, but are lactose-free and vegan.
—Merve Ceylan, Health, 26 Feb. 2026
Formerly vegan restaurants are adding meat to their menus.
—Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 26 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for vegan
Cite this Entry
“Vegan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vegan. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
vegan
noun
Medical Definition
vegan
noun
-ˌan
