ferment
Americannoun
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Also called organized ferment. any of a group of living organisms, as yeasts, molds, and certain bacteria, that cause fermentation.
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Also called unorganized ferment. an enzyme.
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agitation; unrest; excitement; commotion; tumult.
The new painters worked in a creative ferment.
The capital lived in a political ferment.
verb (used with object)
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to act upon as a ferment.
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to cause to undergo fermentation.
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to inflame; foment.
to ferment prejudiced crowds to riot.
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to cause agitation or excitement in.
Reading fermented his active imagination.
verb (used without object)
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to be fermented; undergo fermentation.
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to seethe with agitation or excitement.
noun
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any agent or substance, such as a bacterium, mould, yeast, or enzyme, that causes fermentation
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another word for fermentation
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commotion; unrest
verb
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to undergo or cause to undergo fermentation
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to stir up or seethe with excitement
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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fermentabilitynoun
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fermenternoun
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nonfermentabilitynoun
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fermentableadjective
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nonfermentableadjective
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nonfermentedadjective
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nonfermentingadjective
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unfermentableadjective
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unfermentedadjective
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unfermentingadjective
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well-fermentedadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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fermentsimple
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fermentssimple
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have fermentedperfect
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has fermentedperfect
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am fermentingprogressive
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are fermentingprogressive
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is fermentingprogressive
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have been fermentingperfect progressive
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has been fermentingperfect progressive
Past
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fermentedsimple
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had fermentedperfect
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was fermentingprogressive
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were fermentingprogressive
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had been fermentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ferment
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin fermentum “yeast” (noun), fermentāre “to cause to rise” (verb), equivalent to fer(vēre) “to boil” + -mentum -ment ( def. ); cf. fervent
Explanation
The word ferment means a commotion or excitement. Consider that the fermentation that turns juice or grain into alcohol is the result of the agitated development of bacteria, and then you can better appreciate the word's meaning. While you might be more familiar with the verb ferment, referring to the natural process that produces alcohol, the word is also used as a noun, giving the same type of boiling emotion to people or events. If you keep in mind that the root of the word is fevere, meaning "to boil or seethe," you get a vivid picture of the ferment experienced at a political rally where tempers run high.
Vocabulary lists containing ferment
"My Wonder Horse," Vocabulary from the short story
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The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
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Don't Panic! Synonyms for "Stress"
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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.
See Examples For:
"Any transport delay can risk ruining the batch. If it takes longer than 24 hours, the internal sugars begin to rot and ferment unpredictably, destroying the delicate flavour profile needed for premium spirits," says Dhariwal.
From BBC ● Jun. 11, 2026
With the help of large handheld food mixers, they carefully grind the mixture of dried Californian grapes and water, which they then ferment before distilling it in a large still imported from Germany.
From Barron's ● May 2, 2026
Producers roast the rounded hearts of agave plants in fire pits or kilns, then crush and ferment the cooked material before distilling it in smaller batches.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 26, 2026
North Africa was by then the Bible Belt of the late Roman West, characterized by intense Christian devotion and intellectual ferment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 19, 2025
Meerkats were jumping up and down in a state of great ferment.
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
Soon, this liquid ferments into a tangy beverage with a touch of viscosity, somewhat like Mexico’s pulque.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Kombucha is made when a SCOBY, a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, ferments sweetened tea.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026
Using an assembler in Germany, it takes grape juice, ferments it with bacteria which does not produce alcohol, and adds Chinese green tea to offer complexity and tannins.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026
As the yeast grows, it ferments sugars from the starch grains and releases carbon dioxide bubbles and alcohol as byproducts that make the dough rise.
From Salon ● Apr. 30, 2024
Because in some men it is in them to give up everything personal at some time, before it ferments and poisons—throw it to some human being or some human idea.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
In its defence the restaurant owner argued that just 60% of diners had opted to try the ants, while the rest were served alternatives like fermented vinegar and edible flowers.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
On a sidewalk in a middle-class neighborhood of Colima city, the Bejarano family is selling tuba, a refreshing fermented drink made from the fresh, sweet sap of the coconut palm tree.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Growing interest in kombucha is part of a larger scientific focus on fermented foods.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 23, 2026
Recent years have seen natto join a series of fermented foods, from kimchi to kombucha, that have surged in popularity worldwide as Americans in particular seek better digestive health following the Covid-19 pandemic.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
Ma had shown me how to marinate it with soya, garlic, and fermented black bean.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
At his factory west of Tokyo, workers in hygienic uniforms wash, steam -- and lavishly spray bacteria on -- soybeans that machines then meticulously assemble in cups, before fermenting them for 18 hours.
From Barron's ● Jun. 22, 2026
That meant that urine samples with high sugar content could have started fermenting and consequently generated alcohol that could have skewed the test result or created a false positive.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
While undergoing treatment, his mother became a fixture in the kitchen, helping on the line and tending to pots of fermenting kimchi.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026
Even so, this steady, low-level intake of ethanol implies that the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees, our closest living relatives among the apes, probably encountered alcohol every day from fermenting fruit.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 1, 2025
Jackson Street, though, smelled of rotting fish, cabbages and radishes fermenting in sea brine, sluggish sewers and diesel streetcar fumes.
From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson
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.
