seasoning
/ˈsiː.zən.ɪŋ/ IELTSAcademic
noun
Seasoning is a substance, like salt, pepper, or spices, added to food to improve its taste. It can also mean the act of adding these flavors.
- Add a little seasoning to the soup.
- This curry needs more seasoning.
- Use seasoning carefully, not too much.
Adinary Nuance
Seasoning is broader than salt or pepper. Salt is one seasoning, and spices are seasonings, but seasoning often means the mixture or the act of adding flavor. In cooking, people choose seasoning when they mean the whole flavoring step, not one single ingredient.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- Gia vị
- Spanish
- condimento
- Chinese
- 调味料
- Japanese
- 調味料
- Korean
- 조미료
Etymology
Seasoning comes from the verb season, which in English once meant “to make something fit or ready.” It began being used for food flavoring in the 15th century.
Common phrases
add seasoninga pinch of seasoningseasoning mixseasoning packet
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- Is seasoning the same as spice?
- Not exactly. A spice is one ingredient, while seasoning can mean any flavoring added to food.
- Is seasoning countable or uncountable?
- Usually it is uncountable when talking about food in general. You can also say “a seasoning” for one type of flavoring.
- Can seasoning mean salt and pepper together?
- Yes. It often means salt, pepper, and other flavors used together.
- Is seasoning used in cooking and business writing?
- It is mainly a cooking word. In business writing, it usually has a different meaning in phrases like “five years’ seasoning.”