Curry: Definition, Usage & How to Cook It (2 meaning)

Meaning 1：spicy stew (curry)

curry 🔊

/ˈkʌri/

n./vt.

A spicy dish with meat or vegetables cooked in a special, thick sauce from Asia.

Curry dish illustration: a bowl of chicken curry with rice, showing a rich, spiced sauce.

spicy stew 🔊

➕

/ˈspaɪsi stuː/

n./vt.

Refers to a variety of dishes originating from South Asia, characterized by meat, fish, or vegetables cooked in a complex, seasoned sauce or gravy. The sauce typically contains a blend of spices like turmeric, cumin, coriander, and chili.

📁 Category：Diet & Health 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

The word 'curry' entered English from Tamil 'kaṟi' meaning 'sauce' or 'relish for rice', likely via Portuguese 'caril' during the colonial era.

💡 Mnemonic

Think of being in a 'hurry' to eat a delicious, spicy 'curry'. Remember, CURRY brings the heat and RICE to complete the treat.

📖 Example

We went to an Indian restaurant last night and I ordered a delicious chicken curry with naan bread. 🔊 On our recent visit to an Indian restaurant, I enjoyed a flavorful chicken stew in spiced sauce served with flatbread.

🔗 Collocations

chicken curry – a curry dish made primarily with chicken

curry sauce – the seasoned, often creamy or tomato-based liquid part of the dish

mild curry – a curry prepared with less chili, making it not very spicy

🔄 Synonyms

stew (n.) – a dish of meat and vegetables cooked slowly in liquid, similar in consistency but not necessarily spiced the same way

📖 Cultural Story

The term 'curry' is a British colonial-era adoption of the Tamil word 'kari', meaning sauce. British traders and colonists in the Indian subcontinent used the term broadly to describe a wide variety of spiced stews and sauced dishes. Its popularity in Britain soared in the late 18th century following the establishment of 'curry houses' by returning colonial officials and later by immigrants from South Asia, solidifying its place in global cuisine vocabulary.

Meaning 2：cook with curry (curry)

curry 🔊

/ˈkʌri/

n./vt.

To cook food by adding curry powder or sauce to give it a spicy taste.

How to curry food: a hand seasoning chicken and vegetables with curry powder in a pan.

cook with curry 🔊

➕

/kʊk wɪð ˈkʌri/

n./vt.

The action of preparing or flavoring food by adding curry powder, paste, or a combination of individual spices typical of curry, to give it a distinctive spicy and aromatic taste.

📁 Category：Behaviors & Actions 🔖 Level：Intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Example

To add more flavor, she decided to curry the chicken with some homemade spice mix. 🔊 To enhance the taste, she chose to cook the chicken using her own blend of curry spices.

🔗 Collocations

curry powder – a prepared mixture of ground spices used to make curry

🔄 Synonyms

season (vt.) – to add salt, herbs, or spices to food to improve its flavor

🚫 Antonyms

plain-cook (vt.) – to cook simply without adding strong spices or seasoning

🌱 Derivatives

curried (adj.) – describing food that has been cooked or flavored with curry spices