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.
any dish flavored with curry powder or the like.
a lamb curry.
John (Anthony), 1949–94, British figure skater.
John Steuart 1897–1946, U.S. painter.
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
curry seasoning or sauce
slang to assault (a person) verbally or physically
to beat vigorously, as in order to clean
to dress and finish (leather) after it has been tanned to make it strong, flexible, and waterproof
to groom (a horse)
to ingratiate oneself, esp with superiors
First recorded in 1590–1600, from Tamil kaṟi “sauce, relish”
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
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."
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The crab curry is so delicious and they do these street food sausages that we crave.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
And what are the incentives for Republican lawmakers to curry favor with these figures?
From Slate ● May 7, 2026
Between checkpoints she would snack on cashews and almonds and then at the end of that day's marathon she would have curry, rice, eggs and roti, as well as crisps and chocolate for extra calories.
From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026
A jar of curry sauce, a pot of rice and the quiet confidence that dinner will take care of itself.
From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2026
“Like, why don’t we have curry for breakfast?”
From "The Fault in Our Stars" by John Green
Would James return home to Cleveland, return to Miami, possibly join pals Stephen Curry and Draymond Green at Golden State?
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
Perhaps the same will be true with “Obsession”; Curry Barker’s copycats will try and fail to interpret the trials of dating when personality is a facade, and I’ll be left eating crow.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
They couldn’t get out of the play-in tournament last season, when Curry played only 43 games and Butler played only 38.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
They’re more drawn to stories told by an authentic, recognizable filmmaker with a point of view, like Curry Barker, director of the surprise horror blockbuster “Obsession.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
In the movie, Tim Curry, who plays the character, cries during that song.
From "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky
The meals - simple but filling - include meat curries, flatbreads, kebabs, fruits and sweets, reflecting Lucknow's rich culinary tradition.
From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2026
For the first time, the targets also included 24 out-of-home food categories such as burgers, curries, and pizza.
From Science Daily ● Jan. 31, 2026
Levy UK says it aims to use the whole animal, turning lesser cuts into burgers, curries and pies.
From Barron's ● Dec. 21, 2025
Pastas, curries, stews, really indulgent bowls of oatmeal; many with their requisite pops of green.
From Salon ● Dec. 16, 2025
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
To push their deal through, the shot-calling Ellisons, Larry and David, have indeed curried favor with Mr. Trump.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Once identified among the intelligentsia as a “reformicon” hoping to shift a neoconservative GOP toward a pro-working-class direction, Salam had long curried liberal affection as “literary Brooklyn’s favorite conservative.”
From Slate ● Sep. 25, 2024
Accompany with curried couscous, mint, pine nuts and currants.
From Salon ● Sep. 2, 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
Gianni Infantino has spent years currying favor with President Trump to ensure the smooth running of the tournament.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
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
So hacking companies prioritize currying favor over delivering excellence.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 7, 2024
It outraged him that the people who got credit for higher understanding were those who spent the most time currying favor with the media.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
