chilli

American

[chil-ee] / ˈtʃɪl i /

noun

plural

chillies

Chiefly British. variant of chili.

chilli British

/ ˈtʃɪlɪ /

noun

the small red hot-tasting pod of a type of capsicum used for flavouring sauces, pickles, etc

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of chilli

C17: from Spanish chile, from Nahuatl chilli

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.

"I've seen it on Tik Tok for a while and I just really wanted to try it. I'm having garlic butter, cheese and chilli."

From BBC • Nov. 12, 2025

Meals include beef chilli, Thai red curry, and haggis, neeps and tatties - with the hope of adding fresh fish caught at sea.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2025

Christine and Paul Boyle's award-winning pie has a doner kebab filling made from chicken, beef and a chilli marinade with a sweet chilli sauce.

From BBC • Mar. 7, 2025

Why not try to cook a bean chilli, chickpea curry, or tempeh stir-fry?

From Salon • Dec. 3, 2024

“I shall need to buy bean seeds and chilli seeds, and perhaps a few young pumpkin vines...sweet potatoes of course...I have made a lot from my vegetables before.”

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023