zwieback

noun

zwie·back | \ ˈswē-ˌbak

How to pronounce zwieback (audio)

, ˈswī-, ˈzwē-, ˈzwī-, -ˌbäk

How to pronounce zwieback (audio)

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Definition of zwieback

: a usually sweetened bread enriched with eggs that is baked and then sliced and toasted until dry and crisp

Crunch on the History of Zwieback

In ages past, keeping food fresh for any length of time required a lot of ingenuity, especially when one needed to carry comestibles on a long journey. One of the solutions people came up with for keeping bread edible for traveling was to bake it twice, thereby drying it and slowing the spoiling process. The etymology of zwieback reflects this baker's trick; it was borrowed from a German word that literally means "twice baked." Nowadays, zwieback is not just used as a foodstuff—the texture of the dried bread makes zwieback a suitable teething device for infants. Incidentally, other twice-baked goods whose origins reflect that fact include biscuit and biscotti, both of which come from phrases meaning "twice-cooked bread."

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Dictionary Entries near zwieback

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Time Traveler for zwieback

The first known use of zwieback was in 1863

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More Definitions for zwieback

zwieback

noun

English Language Learners Definition of zwieback

US : a dry, hard bread that is eaten especially by young children

See the full definition for zwieback in the English Language Learners Dictionary

zwieback

noun

zwie·back | \ ˈswē-ˌbak

, ˈswī-\

Kids Definition of zwieback

: a usually sweetened bread made with eggs that is baked and then sliced and toasted until dry and crisp

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