vinegar

From Middle English vynegre, from Old French vinaigre from Old French vyn egre, based on Latin vīnum (“wine”) + Latin ācer (“sour”). Displaced Old English æċed (survived in Middle English eced).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈvɪnəɡə/

• Audio (UK):

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• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈvɪnəɡɚ/

• Audio (US):

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• Hyphenation: vin‧e‧gar
• Rhymes: -ɪnəɡə(ɹ)

vinegar (countable and uncountable, plural vinegars)

2. (uncountable) A sour liquid formed by the fermentation of alcohol used as a condiment or preservative; a dilute solution of acetic acid.
3. (countable) Any variety of vinegar.

   a range of herb-flavoured vinegars

4. (informal, US) Vigor; vitality.
   • 1962, “The Legend of John Henry's Hammer”, performed by Johnny Cash:

     You full of vinegar now, but you 'bout through / We gonna get a steam drill to do your share of driving / Then what's all them muscles gonna do? Huh, John Henry? / Gonna take a little bit of vinegar out of you.

• non-brewed condiment

vinegar (third-person singular simple present vinegars, present participle vinegaring, simple past and past participle vinegared)

1. (transitive) To season or otherwise treat with vinegar.
   • 1841 February–November, Charles Dickens, “Barnaby Rudge. Chapter 19.”, in Master Humphrey’s Clock, volume III, London: Chapman & Hall, […], →OCLC:

     Accordingly, after a vast amount of moaning and crying up-stairs, and much damping of foreheads, and vinegaring of temples, and hartshorning of noses, and so forth […]

• vinegared
• vinegaring

• Ginevra, Ingrave, avering, ingrave, reaving, vaginer