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• curry
  curry

  noun

  a pungent dish of vegetables, onions, meat or fish, etc., flavored with various spices or curry powder, and often eaten with rice.
• Curry
  Curry

  noun

  John (Anthony), 1949–94, British figure skater.

curry

¹ American  

[kur-ee, kuhr-ee] / ˈkɜr i, ˈkʌr i /

Sometimes currie

noun

• curries
  plural

1. East Indian Cooking. a pungent dish of vegetables, onions, meat or fish, etc., flavored with various spices or curry powder, and often eaten with rice.

2. any dish flavored with curry powder or the like.

   a lamb curry.

3. curry powder.

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verb (used with object)

curried, currying

1. to cook or flavor (food) with curry powder or a similar combination of spices.

   to curry eggs.

idioms

1. give (someone) a bit of curry, to rebuke, discipline, or criticize; harass.

curry ² American  

[kur-ee, kuhr-ee] / ˈkɜr i, ˈkʌr i /

verb (used with object)

curried, currying

1. to rub and clean (a horse) with a currycomb.

2. to dress (tanned hides) by soaking, scraping, beating, coloring, etc.

3. to beat; thrash.

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idioms

1. curry favor, to seek to advance oneself through flattery or fawning.

   His fellow workers despised him for currying favor with the boss.

Curry ³ American  

[kur-ee, kuhr-ee] / ˈkɜr i, ˈkʌr i /

noun

1. John (Anthony), 1949–94, British figure skater.

2. John Steuart 1897–1946, U.S. painter.

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curry ¹ British  

/ ˈkʌrɪ /

noun

1. a spicy dish of oriental, esp Indian, origin that is made in many ways but usually consists of meat or fish prepared in a hot piquant sauce

2. curry seasoning or sauce

3. slang to assault (a person) verbally or physically

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verb

1. (tr) to prepare (food) with curry powder or sauce

curry ² British  

/ ˈkʌrɪ /

verb

1. to beat vigorously, as in order to clean

2. to dress and finish (leather) after it has been tanned to make it strong, flexible, and waterproof

3. to groom (a horse)

4. to ingratiate oneself, esp with superiors

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Curry ³ British  

/ ˈkʌrɪ /

noun

1. John ( Anthony ). 1949–94, British ice skater: won the figure-skating gold medal in the 1976 Olympic Games

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• curries
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of curry¹

First recorded in 1590–1600, from Tamil kaṟi “sauce, relish”

Origin of curry²

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English curreien, curraien, curry, from Anglo-French curreier, Old French corroier, earlier conreer “to make ready,” from Vulgar Latin conrēdāre (unrecorded); see origin at corody

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Explanation

Curry is a South Asian-style dish of vegetables or meat in a very flavorful, spicy sauce. You can try many types of curry in an Indian restaurant. There are different curries from different parts of Asia — a Thai curry, for example, might consist of shrimp and vegetables in a rich yellow sauce. When curry is a verb, it can mean "make curry," but it's more commonly "groom a horse." A curry comb, in fact, is specially made for this purpose. This curry comes from the Anglo-French curreier, "to comb a horse," while the dish has a Tamil root, kari, "sauce."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

curry Curry curries curried currying

Curry paste: A good curry paste is an invitation to improvise.

From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2026

While the ingredients are local, the cuisine leans global, including Thai-style curry made with butternut squash and braised chicken leg served with a roasted pumpkin muhammara.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026

"We're just very thankful that the person who tasted the curry was aware of something that wasn't quite right," he said, according to the Seven Network.

From BBC ● Oct. 15, 2026

Sources told NBC News that Combs pays inmates to clean and cook special meals for him, including curry chicken, pizza and empanadas and that the hip-hop artist also receives Chinese-style massages.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026

“To curry your lord father’s favor, I don’t doubt. I know how that game is played. How old is this wretched girl child?”

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

Curry paste: A good curry paste is an invitation to improvise.

From Salon ● Nov. 5, 2026

For the Warriors, Stephen Curry had 31 points, going 11 for 23 from the field and eight for 14 from deep.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2026

Before Paul called the property home, stars including Robert Pattinson, Jim Parsons, Noah Wyle, Tim Curry, cinematographer Robert Richardson, and NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had all reportedly lived at the estate.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026

Curry, who died in August, aged 80, first played the role on stage before the film version, which was released in 1975 and has remained a cult favourite.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

“That’s why you married a Curry boy,” he said.

From Full of Beans by Jennifer L. Holm

A treat for anyone who loves a little wordplay: Can you think of an 11-letter phrase that describes some curries or romances?

From Slate ● Aug. 26, 2026

Tomato already knows butter from ghee-rich curries, grilled cheese dipped in tomato soup and Marcella Hazan’s famously spare sauce.

From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026

Smoky, charcoal-grilled meats and fragrant wok-cooked tomato curries sizzling over an open flame.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026

The meals - simple but filling - include meat curries, flatbreads, kebabs, fruits and sweets, reflecting Lucknow's rich culinary tradition.

From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2026

Rice, lots of different curries, dal, kebab, poori, paratha, samosa, mango pickle, gulab jamun, and rasmalai.

From "The Night Diary" by Veera Hiranandani

"For the next week we just had tuna every day, it was a bit like Forrest Gump and the shrimp, we had curried tuna, fried tuna, battered tuna, beer-battered tuna, raw tuna."

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

But after indulging in a few spoonfuls, my palate begged to differ, craving more in between bites of curried rice and meat.

From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2026

He curried favor in Abu Dhabi by backing a local tech incubator and building personal ties to the royals via a circle of well-connected friends on the city’s luxurious Saadiyat island.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025

“We can’t get Caribbean food this good where we live,” said Richard Harris, a regular seated before a tray of curried mutton.

From New York Times ● Jan. 13, 2024

By daybreak, our flat was heavy with the odor of fried sesame balls and sweet curried chicken crescents.

From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan

He added, “How can it not be equated with currying favor or an outright bribe? How can that not be the case?”

From Salon ● Jan. 31, 2026

He first fought with the invading Japanese to oust Britain, before swapping sides as the tide of war changed and currying favour with London for the cause of independence.

From Barron's ● Dec. 23, 2025

At the temple, Prapakaran, the software engineer, walked 11 circles around the inner sanctum, part of the ritual for currying favor with the Visa God.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2025

The perfect venue, the CEO of the Chinese hacking company thought, to hold a Lunar New Year banquet currying favor with government officials.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 7, 2024

Sometimes, if the work horses were to be used that day, Jody found Billy Buck in the barn harnessing and currying.

From "The Red Pony" by John Steinbeck

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Related Words

• sauce
• seasoning

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