Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

chili powder

American  
[chil-ee pou-der] / ˈtʃɪl i ˌpaʊ dər /

noun

  • chili powders
    plural
  1. a powdered seasoning of dried chiles, or a mixture of ground chiles with other spices, as cumin, oregano, garlic, etc.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of chili powder

An Americanism dating back to 1955–60

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

He tinkered around with the idea and developed a flash-frozen burrito filled with beef, beans and red chili powder.

From The Wall Street Journal Nov. 26, 2025

As a child, I loved eating ribs doused in sweet tangy KC BBQ sauce made with molasses, acidic vinegar and spicy chili powder alongside my cousins.

From Los Angeles Times Dec. 23, 2024

Some of the flavors and ingredients Starbucks is adding also seem to be more niche and add more complexity to operations, like olive oil, lavender, and proprietary chili powder mix in the ‘swicy’ lemonade Refreshers.”

From Salon May 15, 2024

Add some dried herbs or spices if you like, like chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, Italian seasoning.

From Washington Times Nov. 30, 2023

For dinner she had two small fish and another pinch of chili powder.

From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training