pepper
Americannoun
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peppers
plural
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a pungent condiment obtained from various plants of the genus Piper, especially from the dried berries, used whole or ground, of the tropical climbing shrub P. nigrum.
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any plant of the genus Piper.
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any of several plants of the genus Capsicum, especially C. annuum, cultivated in many varieties, or C. frutescens.
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the usually green or red fruit of any of these plants, ranging from mild to very pungent in flavor.
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the pungent seeds of several varieties of C. annuum or C. frutescens, used ground or whole as a condiment.
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Baseball. pepper game.
verb (used with object)
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peppers,
present (3rd person singular)
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peppered,
past participle, past
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peppering
present participle
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to season with or as if with pepper.
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to sprinkle or cover, as if with pepper; dot.
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to sprinkle like pepper.
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to hit with rapidly repeated short jabs.
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to pelt with or as if with shot or missiles.
They peppered the speaker with hard questions.
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to discharge (shot or missiles) at something.
noun
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a woody climbing plant, Piper nigrum, of the East Indies, having small black berry-like fruits: family Piperaceae
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the dried fruit of this plant, which is ground to produce a sharp hot condiment See also black pepper white pepper
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any of various other plants of the genus Piper See cubeb betel kava
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Also called: capsicum. any of various tropical plants of the solanaceous genus Capsicum, esp C. frutescens, the fruits of which are used as a vegetable and a condiment See also bird pepper sweet pepper red pepper cayenne pepper
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the fruit of any of these capsicums, which has a mild or pungent taste
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the condiment made from the fruits of any of these plants
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any of various similar but unrelated plants, such as water pepper
verb
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to season with pepper
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to sprinkle liberally; dot
his prose was peppered with alliteration
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to pelt with small missiles
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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peppersimple
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pepperssimple
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have pepperedperfect
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has pepperedperfect
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am pepperingprogressive
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are pepperingprogressive
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is pepperingprogressive
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have been pepperingperfect progressive
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has been pepperingperfect progressive
Past
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pepperedsimple
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had pepperedperfect
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was pepperingprogressive
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were pepperingprogressive
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had been pepperingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of pepper
before 1000; Middle English peper, piper, Old English pipor (> Old Norse pipari, piparr ) < Latin piper < Greek péperi; compare Old Frisian piper, Dutch peper, Old High German pfeffar ( German Pfeffer ); these and Old English pipor perhaps < a common West Germanic borrowing < Latin
Explanation
The black spice you sprinkle on your food to make it taste more flavorful? That's pepper. If your soup is a little bland, try adding some salt and pepper. Pepper starts out as a tiny fruit called a peppercorn. Once harvested and dried, these are ground into a powder and become what we think of as pepper. Other kinds of pepper include white pepper, which is a variation on black pepper, and the vegetables known as peppers, including sweet bell peppers and spicy jalapeño peppers. As a verb, pepper means "fill with scattered items," like the way you might pepper your essay with sophisticated vocabulary words to impress your teacher.
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:
Working from before dawn until midnight, farmers Nikoletta Pajsan Nagy and Laszlo Pajsan fought Europe's driest summer ever to save their red pepper harvest in Hungary.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
The grandfather says that a group of Israeli soldiers protected his family from the settlers who tried to approach them, using pepper spray to force them back.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2026
Crisp, with notes of green apple and ripe pear and a kiss of pepper and herbs, it pairs with everything from seafood to salad to schnitzel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
Then I finish with the zest of half a lemon and as much black pepper as my heart tells me is correct.
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
At last the dato said he would have pepper for the Putnam tomorrow’.
From "Carry On, Mr. Bowditch" by Jean Lee Latham
Booths were adorned with strings of dried red peppers -- the raw ingredient used to make paprika -- recalling a sight once common on houses in the surrounding countryside every autumn.
From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026
This $5.95 million house in Miami takes the timelessness of Midcentury Modern and peppers it with an undeniable futuristic flair, earning it the nickname “The Jetsons House.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026
The answer, eventually, was: Then I could finish the peppers and onions and make it another way.
From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026
Chipotle says it has removed jalapeños from some of its restaurants after determining the peppers could be tied to a salmonella outbreak public health officials are investigating.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
I could feel my tongue slowly begin to throb as the heat of the peppers crawled over it like an army of tiny fire ants.
From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez
ChatGPT peppered these follow-up questions with a few gentle jabs at my own pressure tactics—enough for me to see that my focus on solutions might actually be stressful or uncomfortable for my friend.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026
His calls for action are peppered with the occasional "Amen", pronounced in the American way, with the first syllable said "ay" rather than "ah".
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
As I peppered him with questions about the pink car and the Brinks armored truck, he remained cagey while slowly yielding information.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
Reaction was quick, sad and peppered with family memories.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
She sat in silence while the others peppered me with questions.
From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs
"Things are really taking hold," he said, before analysts started peppering him with questions about profits.
From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2026
Baker is known for peppering his executives with a never-ending stream of ideas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 15, 2026
Their restraint with peppering the dialogue with blatant evil effectively allows the version of fear hiding behind the surface politeness of America’s nicest small towns to seep into our consciousness.
From Salon ● Dec. 8, 2025
The Diddy trial has been full of nonstop drama: from constant bickering between the legal teams to outbursts and altercations inside and outside the courthouse, all peppering a constant stream of utterly shocking testimonies.
From Slate ● Jun. 10, 2025
I hear shouts rise from the street, peppering the house.
From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee
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.
