fizz

American  

[fiz] / fɪz /

verb (used without object)

1. to make a hissing or sputtering sound; effervesce.

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noun

1. a fizzing sound; effervescence.

2. soda water or other effervescent water.

3. an iced mixed drink made of liquor, lemon juice, sugar, and soda.

   gin fizz.

4. British Informal. champagne.

fizz British  

/ fɪz /

verb

1. to make a hissing or bubbling sound

2. (of a drink) to produce bubbles of carbon dioxide, either through fermentation or aeration

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noun

1. a hissing or bubbling sound

2. the bubbly quality of a drink; effervescence

3. any effervescent drink

Usage

What does fizz mean? Fizz is a bubbliness or bubbly quality, like the kind in a carbonated drink. A much more formal word for this is effervescence. Fizz can also refer to the kind of hissing sound that such bubbliness makes or to the kind of drink that’s known for having fizz, like soda (pop), seltzer, and soda water (which is sometimes called fizzwater). More specifically, the word fizz can refer to an alcoholic mixed drink containing liquor, fruit juice, sugar, and club soda. A classic example is a gin fizz. Fizz is also a British slang term for champagne, which is known for bubbliness (it’s sometimes called bubbly for the same reason). Fizz can also be used as a verb meaning to make a bubbling or hissing noise or to produce bubbles, as in That soda bottle may fizz a bit when you open it. Something that’s bubbly or fizzing can be described with the adjective fizzy. Example: I like how the fizz tickles my nose as I’m drinking.

Other Word Forms

• fizzer
  noun
• fizziness
  noun
• fizzy
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of fizz

First recorded in 1655–65; back formation from fizzle

Explanation

To fizz is to froth or bubble over. If you shake up a soda, it will fizz out of the bottle when you open it. When something fizzes, you hear a hissing sound as the tiny gas bubbles are released. Any carbonated beverage will fizz when it's opened or poured, the way seltzer fizzes in a glass, or beer fizzes and foams in a mug. The word fizz, which has been in use since the 1600s, is imitative — in other words, it sounds just like what it means.

Example Sentences

But with 3.98 % global market share, Bing, the No. 2 player behind Google, has little fizz.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 11, 2025

Using fresh, seasonal ingredients can transform a nonalcoholic drink from a self-imposed alternative into something that feels special, whether it’s a persimmon gin fizz or a spiced whiskey sour.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 16, 2024

The idea is simple: As the weight on the volcanoes is lifted, the gases trapped in magma are released like the fizz in an uncorked bottle of champagne, driving eruptions.

From Science Magazine • Dec. 2, 2024

She wrote: "Flowers and fizz for me? How kind."

From BBC • Nov. 6, 2024

But inside my body I felt like a big bottle of warm Coke when you drop it in the grocery store and it begins to fizz out the top like a bomb about to blow.

From "Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key" by Jack Gantos