pepperoni

American  

[pep-uh-roh-nee] / ˌpɛp əˈroʊ ni /

Or peperoni

noun

1. a highly seasoned, hard sausage of beef and pork.

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pepperoni British  

/ ˌpɛpəˈrəʊnɪ /

noun

1. a highly seasoned dry sausage of pork and beef spiced with pepper, used esp on pizza

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Etymology

Origin of pepperoni

1920–25, < Italian peperoni, plural of peperone cayenne pepper plant, augmentative of pepe pepper

Explanation

Pepperoni is a flavorful sausage that's usually cut in thin slices. On pizza night, you and your sister might argue about toppings: you prefer pepperoni, while she likes mushrooms and olives. Officially, pepperoni is a variety of salami, a sausage that makes most people think of sandwiches rather than pizza. Usually pepperoni is bright red, with a peppery, smoky flavor and a soft, chewy texture. Rather than black pepper, most pepperoni is flavored with paprika, a seasoning made from sweet bell peppers. The origin of the name backs this up: it comes from the Italian peperone, "bell pepper."

Example Sentences

It did have cheese, though, and pepperoni, sausage, hamburger, onion, and green peppers.

From Slate • Nov. 13, 2025

For him that means a tightly edited menu of classics like pepperoni, meatball and a white pie with mushrooms.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 8, 2025

It’s why Tino indulged every customer, both nasty and agreeable, while working his college summers as a bus boy and waiter at Bella Notte, the family restaurant in Pittsburgh known for its shredded pepperoni pizzas.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 24, 2025

Many of those coal miners would often eat pepperoni rolls on their lunch breaks, which garnered the name "coal miner's lunch."

From Salon • Sep. 4, 2024

Maniac produced his certificate for conquering Cobble’s Knot, and twenty minutes later the young runaways were at tacking a large pizza with pepperoni.

From "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli

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