peppercorn
Americannoun
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the berry of the pepper plant, Piper nigrum, dried and used as a condiment, in pickling, etc.
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anything very small or insignificant.
adjective
noun
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the small dried berry of the pepper plant ( Piper nigrum )
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something trifling
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of peppercorn
before 1000; Middle English pepercorn; Old English piporcorn. See pepper, corn 1
Explanation
If you've ever filled a pepper grinder, you know what peppercorns are — they're those tiny round balls that become black pepper when they're crushed. Before they're harvested, peppercorns are berries on a vine. The plant is native to Kerala, India, but grows in many warm places, including Vietnam, which exports most of the world's peppercorns. Once dried, peppercorns are ground and used to season food. Most are black, but you can also find green, white, and even pink peppercorns, which all have slightly different flavors.
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.
Ice Cream Jubilee: Known for its fun and unusual flavors, Ice Cream Jubilee has created a tasting flight of six ice creams, with Citrus Sichuan Peppercorn and Matcha Green Tea among the options.
From Washington Post • Jan. 27, 2022
It was Clarence Paxton, and so little did Billie trust this treacherous cousin of her friends, that she gladly joined Timothy Peppercorn who had come running down the walk to find her.
From The Motor Maids by Palm and Pine by Stokes, Katherine
Of Tory war, Peppercorn, aye, that will I!
From Horse-Shoe Robinson A Tale of the Tory Ascendency by Kennedy, John Pendleton
They had invited Timothy Peppercorn to come, and Edward Paxton, who was growing more and more in favor with the Motor Maids every day.
From The Motor Maids by Palm and Pine by Stokes, Katherine
Let them follow where I lead, Peppercorn; that is all I ask, said Habershaw significantly.
From Horse-Shoe Robinson A Tale of the Tory Ascendency by Kennedy, John Pendleton
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.
