Peppery
/ˈpɛp.ə.ri/noun
Having the sharp, biting taste or quality of pepper; also lively, irritable, or spirited.
Did you know?Pepper entered English through Latin and Old French from a Sanskrit word for the black pepper plant, showing how one tiny spice traveled across empires and became a metaphor for sharpness in speech and temperament.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pepi- / *piperi-
“A reconstructed prehistoric source connected with pepper in later Indo-Iranian forms.”
Sanskrit
Sanskrit
pippalī
“Long pepper, a pungent spice plant.”
Latin
Latin
piper
“Pepper.”
Old French
Old French
pivre / poivre
“Pepper.”
Middle English
English
peper
“Pepper.”
15th Century
English
peppery
“Having the quality or taste of pepper; pungent or sharp.”