cider

American  

[sahy-der] / ˈsaɪ dər /

British, cyder

noun

1. the juice pressed from apples (or formerly from some other fruit) used for drinking, either before fermentation sweet cider or after fermentation hard cider, or for making applejack, vinegar, etc.

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cider British  

/ ˈsaɪdə /

noun

1. Also called (US): hard cider.  an alcoholic drink made from the fermented juice of apples

2. Also called: sweet cider.  an unfermented drink made from apple juice

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• ciderish
  adjective
• ciderlike
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of cider

1250–1300; Middle English sidre < Middle French < Old French si ( s ) dre < Late Latin sīcera strong drink < Septuagint Greek sī́kera < Hebrew shēkhār (Levit. 10:9); replacing Middle English sithere < Old French sidre

Explanation

Cider is an unfiltered juice or fermented beverage made from apples. In the fall, there's nothing like a mug of hot, spiced cider. Apple cider is a darker-colored, unsweetened version of apple juice — the main difference is that cider is fresh, with a short shelf life, and it isn't filtered. Another kind of cider is this same pressed apple juice, allowed to ferment and become alcoholic. This is often called "hard cider." The word comes from the Old French cidre, "pear or apple cider," ultimately from the Hebrew shekhar, "strong drink."