umeboshi

American  

[oo-muh-boh-shee, oo-me-baw-shee] / ˌu məˈboʊ ʃi, ˌu mɛˈbɔ ʃi /

noun

umeboshis plural

1. a salty and tart Japanese condiment made from unripened plums pickled in a brine.

---

Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• umeboshis
  plural

Etymology

Origin of umeboshi

First recorded in 1820–30; from Japanese ume “Japanese apricot” + -boshi, combining form of hoshi “a drying,” verbal noun from hosu ( Old Japanese posu ) “to dry”

Example Sentences

The Caesar salad, with candied anchovies, gem lettuce, and umeboshi dressing, is a playful twist, but the main course is where things get truly exciting.

From Salon • Oct. 31, 2025

Norio Kushi, one of the couple’s five children, recalled packaging brown rice, miso, soy sauce and umeboshi in the family’s basement as an 11-year-old before the operation was shut down by the health department.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2021

It derives from a pickled stone-fruit snack called see mui in Cantonese, which is itself related to Japanese umeboshi, a snack made of salted ume plums or apricots pickled into sour little balls of delight.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 11, 2021

Serve as is, or add anything else you like: pickles, salted umeboshi plum, soy sauce, sesame seeds, bitter green leaves, chopped up toasted nori seaweed ...

From The Guardian • Apr. 15, 2020

They include raw seafood, yaki skewers, okonomiyaki from a cast-iron skillet, plates of fried oysters with smoked yam purée, and grilled mackerel with gobo and umeboshi.

From New York Times • Oct. 15, 2019