ketchup

Also cat·sup

[kech-uhp, kach-]

noun

1. a condiment consisting of puréed tomatoes, onions, vinegar, sugar, spices, etc.

2. any of various other condiments or sauces for meat, fish, etc..

   mushroom ketchup; walnut ketchup.

ketchup

/ ˈkɛtʃəp /

noun

1. any of various piquant sauces containing vinegar

   tomato ketchup

Word History and Origins

Origin of ketchup¹

First recorded in 1705–15; from Malay kəchap “fish sauce,” perhaps from dialectal Chinese kéjāp (Guangdong) or ke-tsiap (Xiamen), akin to Chinese qié “eggplant” + chī “juice”

Word History and Origins

Origin of ketchup¹

C18: from Chinese (Amoy) kōetsiap brine of pickled fish, from kōe seafood + tsiap sauce

Example Sentences

He flings his lunch against the wall, shattering a piece of Nancy Reagan’s china and leaving a trail of ketchup and hamburger grease on the wallpaper and faux gilt sconce recently procured from Home Depot.

Read more on Salon

You cut the hot cross bun, you cut the sausage up, put it in the hot cross bun, then put ketchup, then close the hot cross bun.

Read more on BBC

The children found it all quite tasty and did not ask for ketchup once.

Read more on Literature

The sauce—a salmon-colored mix that allegedly uses ketchup, mayonnaise and Worcestershire sauce as a base—has probably played the biggest role in driving business and whipping what the company calls “Caniacs” into a frenzy.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

In the opening minutes we watch as a woman nearly crashes her car while looking up the Wikipedia page for ketchup.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• dressing 
• gravy 
• horseradish 
• mustard 
• pepper 
• relish 
• salsa 
• salt 
• sauce 
• seasoning 
• spice