sour cream

American

noun

cream soured by the lactic acid produced by a ferment.

sour cream British

noun

Also called: soured cream. cream soured by lactic acid bacteria, used in making salads, dips, etc

"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

Etymology

Origin of sour cream

An Americanism dating back to 1815–25

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:

sour cream

It also makes sour cream, cream cheese and lactose-free options.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 8, 2026

There are a million ways to enjoy it, but my favorite is on a fresh latke with a smear of sour cream or with cold butter on a thick slice of Russian black bread.

From Salon ● Dec. 4, 2025

The contents of each box varies, but they will have fruit and vegetables along with other items such as salmon fillets, garlic bread, sour cream, chicken and vegetable soup.

From BBC ● Nov. 21, 2025

Mr. Wright keeps tossing in would-be funny denunciations of the moneyed elites that are about as spicy as a bowl of sour cream.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 13, 2025

We talked about sour cream and onion chips versus Spicy Nacho Doritos.

From "P.S. I Miss You" by Jen Petro-Roy

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023