seltzer

[selt-ser]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR seltzer ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

(sometimes initial capital letter) a naturally effervescent mineral water containing common salt and small quantities of sodium, calcium, and magnesium carbonates.

tap water that has been commercially filtered, carbonated, and bottled with no addition of minerals or mineral salts.

Origin of seltzer

1735–45; < German Selterser named after Selters, a village near Wiesbaden; see -er¹

Also called seltzer water.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for seltzer

drink, tonic, seltzer, mixer, pop

Examples from the Web for seltzer

Contemporary Examples of seltzer

The ire Friedberg and Seltzer have drawn from crowds is both boisterous and vehement–Airplane!
Seth MacFarlane’s ‘A Million Ways to Die in the West’ Is Yet Another Failed Spoof
Alex Suskind
May 29, 2014
Backed by this Republican support, Seltzer eked out a narrow 35-vote victory in a low-turnout primary.
Operation Hilarity: Democrats for Santorum and Other Party-Crossing Mischief
Ben Jacobs
February 29, 2012

Historical Examples of seltzer

He was indeed wearied, and agreed to take a glass of hock and seltzer.
Vivian Grey
Earl of Beaconsfield, Benjamin Disraeli
Near by were a pail of water, a pan of ashes, a rug, and a seltzer siphon.
Common Science
Carleton W. Washburne
"Yes, I expect we shall be ready for a hock and seltzer, at any rate," said the Colonel.
A Desert Drama
A. Conan Doyle
"Have another Rhine wine and seltzer," suggested the New Yorker.
Sixes and Sevens
O. Henry
I am the only one in Trouville who manufactures Seltzer water he says.
Bouvard and Pcuchet, part 2
Gustave Flaubert

British Dictionary definitions for seltzer

Seltzer

noun

a natural effervescent water with a high content of minerals

a similar synthetic water, used as a beverage

Also called: Seltzer water

Word Origin for Seltzer

C18: changed from German Selterser Wasser water from (Nieder) Selters, district where mineral springs are located, near Wiesbaden, Germany

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for seltzer

1741, from German Selterser (Wasser), a kind of mineral water, literally "of Selters," village near Weisbaden in Hesse-Nassau, where the mineral water is found.