Peperoni
/ˌpɛpəˈroʊni/noun
A spicy cured sausage, especially one used as a pizza topping.
Did you know?In Italian, the singular *peperone* means a bell pepper, and *peperoni* is just its plural—while the pizza topping name was borrowed into English from Italian-American food culture.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*peper-
“A root associated with pepper, later spread through ancient trade terms for pungent spices.”
Latin
Latin
piper
“Black pepper.”
Late Latin
Latin
piperāre
“To season with pepper.”
Italian
Italian
peperone
“Bell pepper or large sweet pepper.”
Italian
Italian
peperoni
“Plural of peperone; peppers.”
English
English
peperoni
“Borrowed as the name of a spicy Italian-American sausage topping.”
Explore more surprising origins