vanilla

American  

[vuh-nil-uh, -nel-uh] / vəˈnɪl ə, -ˈnɛl ə /

noun

1. any tropical, climbing orchid of the genus Vanilla, especially V. planifolia, bearing podlike fruit yielding an extract used in flavoring food, in perfumery, etc.

2. Also called vanilla bean.  the fruit or bean of this orchid.

3. the extract of this fruit.

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adjective

1. containing or flavored with vanilla.

   vanilla custard.

2. Informal. plain vanilla.

vanilla British  

/ vəˈnɪlə /

noun

1. any tropical climbing orchid of the genus Vanilla, esp V. plonifolia, having spikes of large fragrant greenish-yellow flowers and long fleshy pods containing the seeds (beans)

2. the pod or bean of certain of these plants, used to flavour food, etc

3. a flavouring extract prepared from vanilla beans and used in cooking

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adjective

1. flavoured with or as if with vanilla

   vanilla ice cream

2. slang ordinary or conventional

   a vanilla kind of guy

Etymology

Origin of vanilla

1655–65; < New Latin < Spanish vainilla little pod, equivalent to vain ( a ) a sheath (< Latin vāgīna sheath) + -illa diminutive suffix (< LL)

Explanation

Vanilla is the flavor for food — such as ice cream — that contains extract from the vanilla plant. This word also describes things that are boring or plain. If something is called vanilla — such as coffee or a milkshake — it's usually flavored with vanilla extract or the seeds from a vanilla pod. Vanilla is the most common flavor of ice cream. This word has another, slightly insulting, meaning: a vanilla movie is plain and kind of boring. A vanilla song is on the blah side. Maybe it's because vanilla food tends to be white and plain that we use this word for other things that are bland.

Example Sentences

And yes, sometimes that means recommending specialty ingredients genuinely worthy of a relative splurge: the good vanilla, candied citrus, Kewpie over the bottom-shelf mayonnaise.

From Salon • May 12, 2026

For dessert, the VIPs were served a sweet beehive-shaped chocolate gâteau with a vanilla bean crémeux custard.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2026

The Hartford fund also benefits from diversification, with exposure that goes beyond plain vanilla U.S.

From Barron's • Apr. 9, 2026

I opted for the classics: onion soup, retro vol-au-vent overflowing with mushrooms and, for dessert, an île flottante heady with vanilla and caramel.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 14, 2026

It was a vanilla scram, with nothing remarkable to report.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland