pepper
/ˈpɛp.ə/; /ˈpɛp.ɚ/noun, verb
A pungent spice, pepper plant, or capsicum fruit
From Greek, via Latin and Old English pepper (Pungent spice and the plant yielding it).
Lineage
Selected stage
Modern English
pepper — A pungent spice, pepper plant, or capsicum fruit
The story
Pepper began as the name of a prized pungent spice, and English later applied it to the quite different capsicum fruit because its heat recalled the Old World seasoning. English pepper came through Middle English peper and Old English piper, from Latin piper. Latin borrowed the word from Ancient Greek πέπερι (péperi), which itself came from an Indo-Aryan source; Sanskrit पिप्पलि (pippali, “long pepper”) is compared with it. The Sanskrit word is ultimately linked to Dravidian, with Tamil திப்பலி (tippali) given as a comparison, though the precise earlier origin is uncertain. The word’s travels are visible in related Germanic forms such as Dutch peper and German Pfeffer.
Words from the same roots
pepper · Ancient Greek, via Latin and Old English, ‘Pungent spice and the plant yielding it’
Derivedpeppercorn, peppery, pepperidge, peppergrass