vegetarian

American  

[vej-i-tair-ee-uhn] / ˌvɛdʒ ɪˈtɛər i ən /

noun

• vegetarians
  plural

1. a person who does not eat or does not believe in eating meat, fish, fowl, or, in some cases, any food derived from animals, as eggs or cheese, but subsists on vegetables, fruits, nuts, grain, etc.

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adjective

1. of or relating to vegetarianism or vegetarians.

2. devoted to or advocating this practice.

3. consisting solely of vegetables.

   vegetarian vegetable soup.

vegetarian British  

/ ˌvɛdʒɪˈtɛərɪən /

noun

1. a person who advocates or practises vegetarianism

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adjective

1. relating to, advocating, or practising vegetarianism

2. cookery strictly, consisting of vegetables and fruit only, but usually including milk, cheese, eggs, etc

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonvegetarian
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• vegetarians
  plural

Etymology

Origin of vegetarian

First recorded in 1835–45; veget(able) + -arian

Explanation

A vegetarian is someone who doesn't eat any meat, including fish. Many vegetarians eat plenty of fruits and vegetables — but others subsist on pizza and mac and cheese. This is a word that has to do with diet — what people eat. Vegetarians avoid meat, usually for health reasons, for environmental reasons, or because they believe it's wrong to kill animals for food. Vegetarians will eat some animal products, like eggs and dairy, but vegans won't. Both vegetarian and vegan diets are becoming more common. Many animals are vegetarians, including our close relative, the gorilla.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vegetarian vegetarians

Like many Emersonians, the elder Alcott was a vegetarian who cherished animal welfare.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

She’s a vegetarian but she’s a picky vegetarian, so that combo makes it almost impossible for her to find food anywhere.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

The move rekindled a long-running debate over food and religion in the world's most populous country, with critics accusing the government of trying to turn schoolchildren vegetarian.

From Barron's ● Jul. 30, 2026

This, alas, includes me: After freaking out a little about my salad order from earlier this week, I switched to steaming-hot vegetarian noodles from a neighborhood Chinese shop.

From Slate ● Jul. 17, 2026

“You know what they call a vegetarian in the woods?” he said to me.

From "Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat" by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

For vegetarians, you can get your protein from lentils, nuts, milk, tofu and cheese too.

From BBC ● Jul. 8, 2026

In the same vein, if you have a decent number of vegetarians joining you, put together a separate fund for protein.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 11, 2026

They’re vegetarians: They eat grass, alfalfa, cassava, sweet potato, carrots, beets, and, at the zoo, a commercial feed.

From Slate ● May 27, 2026

A 2025 comprehensive review concluded that B12 deficiency remains a modifiable risk factor for neurological and cognitive problems, especially in high risk groups such as older adults and vegetarians.

From Science Daily ● May 22, 2026

“A vegetarian restaurant? Impossible. There are only four vegetarians in this country, including Doris,” Bisola said.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie