ferment

[ noun fur-ment; verb fer-ment ]

See synonyms for: ferment fermented fermenting on Thesaurus.com

noun

Also called organized ferment. any of a group of living organisms, as yeasts, molds, and certain bacteria, that cause fermentation.
Also called unorganized ferment. an enzyme.

fermentation.
agitation; unrest; excitement; commotion; tumult: The new painters worked in a creative ferment. The capital lived in a political ferment.

verb (used with object)

to act upon as a ferment.
to cause to undergo fermentation.

to inflame; foment: to ferment prejudiced crowds to riot.
to cause agitation or excitement in: Reading fermented his active imagination.

verb (used without object)

to be fermented; undergo fermentation.
to seethe with agitation or excitement.

Origin of ferment

1350–1400; Middle English <Latin fermentum yeast (noun), fermentāre to cause to rise (v.); akin to barm, Latin fervēre to boil

Other words from ferment

fer·ment·a·ble, adjective
fer·ment·a·bil·i·ty, noun
non·fer·ment·a·bil·i·ty, noun
non·fer·ment·a·ble, adjective
non·fer·ment·ed, adjective
non·fer·ment·ing, adjective
un·fer·ment·a·ble, adjective
un·fer·ment·ed, adjective
un·fer·ment·ing, adjective
well-fer·ment·ed, adjective

Words that may be confused with ferment

ferment , foment

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ferment in a sentence

If you’re serving a plant-based Thanksgiving, or just want to try flavoring your gravy another way, wine — fortified or not — cider, vinegar, herbs, ferments, spices and aromatic vegetables are your best bets.
How to make pan gravy with or without meat drippings | Daniela Galarza | November 11, 2020 | Washington Post
That means that Champagne is fermented a second time in the bottle when sealed closed, which naturally produces the bubbles.
Champagne: You’re Drinking It All Wrong | Kayleigh Kulp | December 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The malted barley, yeast, and water are cooked, fermented, and distilled exactly the same.
How Much Do Whisky Casks Really Affect Taste? | | December 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Some of the most popular include Kriek (fermented with sour cherries), Framboise (raspberries), and Pêche (peaches).
Wine Snobs, There’s a Beer for You | Jordan Salcito | April 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Unfiltered fermented grapes make ochratoxin-A, a neurotoxic, carcinogenic, immunosuppressive compound.
Five Ways to Recover Faster From Your Thanksgiving Binge | Dave Asprey | November 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST

During dry periods, the prints fermented, and when the rain returned, they were preserved under layers of sediment and mud.
294 Dinosaurs Once Walked on This Wall in Bolivia | Nina Strochlic | October 24, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
They did justice to the provisions, but to their credit they drank very slightly of the fermented liquors.
Digby Heathcote | W.H.G. Kingston
Now our sulphur will sufficiently be fermented, or our medicine brought into a metallic nature.
Witch, Warlock, and Magician | William Henry Davenport Adams
They make free use of fermented drinks, especially brandy, chicha, and guarapo.
Travels in Peru, on the Coast, in the Sierra, Across the Cordilleras and the Andes, into the Primeval Forests | J. J. von Tschudi
Guarapo is a fermented liquor, made of sugar-cane pulp and water.
Travels in Peru, on the Coast, in the Sierra, Across the Cordilleras and the Andes, into the Primeval Forests | J. J. von Tschudi
So little Brahminists are they that they eat of the flesh of the jackal and the cow, and indulge freely in fermented drinks.
The Ethnology of the British Colonies and Dependencies | Robert Gordon Latham

British Dictionary definitions for ferment

ferment

noun(ˈfɜːmɛnt)

any agent or substance, such as a bacterium, mould, yeast, or enzyme, that causes fermentation
another word for fermentation

commotion; unrest

verb(fəˈmɛnt)

to undergo or cause to undergo fermentation
to stir up or seethe with excitement

Origin of ferment

C15: from Latin fermentum yeast, from fervēre to seethe

ferment

See foment

Derived forms of ferment

fermentable, adjective
fermentability, noun
fermenter, noun

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

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