curry

1 of 3

verb (1)

cur·​ry ˈkər-ē 

ˈkə-rē

curried; currying

transitive verb

1

: to clean the coat of (an animal, such as a horse) with a currycomb

2

: to treat (tanned leather) especially by incorporating oil or grease

3

: beat, thrash

see also curry favor

curry

2 of 3

noun

cur·​ry ˈkər-ē 

ˈkə-rē

variants or less commonly currie

plural curries

1

: a food, dish, or sauce in Indian cuisine seasoned with a mixture of pungent spices

also : a food or dish seasoned with curry powder

2

: curry powder

curry

3 of 3

verb (2)

curried; currying

transitive verb

: to flavor or cook with curry powder or a curry sauce

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• bash
• baste
• bat
• batter
• beat
• belabor
• belt
• birch
• bludgeon
• buffet
• bung up
• club
• do
• drub
• fib [British]
• flog
• hammer
• hide
• lace
• lambaste
• lambast
• lash
• lather
• lick
• maul
• mess (up)
• paddle
• pelt
• pommel
• pound
• pummel
• punch out
• rough (up)
• slate
• slog
• switch
• tan
• thrash
• thresh
• thump
• tromp
• wallop
• whale
• whip
• whop
• whap
• whup
• work over

Examples of curry in a Sentence

Verb (1)

vowed to curry the hide of the person who stole his wallet

Noun

We had chicken curry for dinner.

The recipe calls for a tablespoon of curry.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Think: chicken sausage and kale soup, griddled onion burgers, ponzu chili steak bowl, sweet and spicy ponzu pork meatballs, or curry in a hurry chickpea flatbreads. —Emily Farris, Bon Appétit, 28 Sep. 2024

This process allows one side to curry political favor internationally by shifting blame for continued conflict onto its opponent, and subsequently justifying continued and escalated hostilities. —Eric Min, Foreign Affairs, 24 July 2024

Noun

Salty popcorn, tangy lemon, peppery curries—any flavor profile works as a canvas. —Karen Yuan, Bon Appétit, 2 Dec. 2024

Garlic is also a common ingredient in curry and pairs well with turmeric in savory dishes and marinades. —Chelsea Rae Bourgeois, Rdn, Ld, Health, 25 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Middle English curreyen, correyen, cunrayen "to clean and comb (a horse), treat (tanned leather)," borrowed from Anglo-French conreier, cunreier, curreier (continental Old French conreer) "to prepare, dress, equip, tidy up, clean and rub down (an animal), cure (herring)," going back to Vulgar Latin *conrēdāre, probably borrowed from Gothic garedan "to make provision for" (with con- con- replacing ga-), from ga-, perfective and collective prefix + -redan, going back to Germanic *rēđan- "to make provision for, decide" — more at read entry 1

Note: As with the related verb arraier, aroier (see array entry 1), the Anglo-French forms conreier, etc., show generalization of the tonic stem of the Old French verb. English has further modified the French word by shifting stress onto the initial syllable. In contrast with array entry 1, the more general meaning of conreier ("provide, equip") never entered English. — The presumption is that *conrēdāre was an early adaptation into spoken Latin of a word used by Goths recruited into or fighting alongside of the Roman army. The etymon is generally attested in Romance languages outside of Romanian: Old Occitan conrezar "to equip," conrear "to provide what is needed," Catalan & Spanish conrear "to cultivate (land)" (the Spanish word perhaps borrowed from Catalan), Italian corredare "to equip, furnish" (with an apparent reflex of open rather than close e).

Noun

Tamil kaṟi (or a cognate word in another Dravidian language)

First Known Use

Verb (1)

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1792, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing curry

• curry favor
• curry powder

Kids Definition

curry

1 of 3 verb

cur·​ry ˈkər-ē 

ˈkə-rē

curried; currying

: to rub and clean the coat of

curry a horse

currier noun

curry

2 of 3 noun

cur·​ry ˈkər-ē 

ˈkə-rē

plural curries

1

: curry powder

2

: a food seasoned with curry powder

curry

3 of 3 verb

curried; currying

: to flavor or cook with curry powder

Etymology

Verb

Middle English currayen "to comb the coat of (a horse)," from early French correier "to prepare," probably from a Latin word of Germanic origin

Noun

from Tamil (a language of southern India) kaṟi "a spiced dish of food"

Biographical Definition

Curry

biographical name

Cur·​ry ˈkər-ē 

ˈkə-rē

John Steuart 1897–1946 American painter