ginger

/ˈdʒɪndʒə/US/ˈd͡ʒɪnd͡ʒɚ/

ginger noun: the pungent aromatic rhizome of a tropical Asian herb, Zingiber officinale, used as a spice and as a stimulant and acarminative.

Image: Forest & Kim Starr, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun (1)

ginger (countable and uncountable, plural gingers)

The pungent aromatic rhizome of a tropical Asian herb, Zingiber officinale, used as a spice and as a stimulant and acarminative.
The plant that produces this rhizome.
Other species belonging to the same family, Zingiberaceae, especially those of the genus Zingiber
A reddish-brown color.
(colloquial, countable, derogatory, often) A person with reddish hair; a redhead.
(colloquial, uncountable) Vitality, vigour, liveliness (of character).
- The position in the country and in this House might be well expressed by a reference to the recent activities of the ginger party in Great Britain — the party that demanded that more ginger be put into the conduct of the war.1918, Official Report of Debates, House of Commons, Canada Parliament House of Commons
- He had, however, "put some more ginger in two nights ago. Things move with exasperating slowness in this country.”1990, Nancy Elizabeth Gallagher, Egypt's Other Wars: Epidemics and the Politics of Public Health
(colloquial) Ginger ale, or can or bottle of such (especially if dry).
- Can you buy dry ginger in Croatia? If not what is an alternative?2018 May 2, pyatts, Tripadvisor
(Scotland, colloquial, especially Glasgow) Any fizzy soft drink, or can or bottle of such; pop; soda.
- Here’s, um, not toast but bread, anyway. And a can of ginger.2010, Denise Mina, Still Midnight
- A lot of people will tell you ‘ginger’ tastes best in glass, and there is a science behind that,” says the company’s commercial director.2015 August 19, Douglas Fraser, bbc.co.uk

Adjective (1)

ginger (comparative more ginger or (rare) gingerer, superlative most ginger or (rare) gingerest)

Of a reddish-brown color.
- My eyes track upwards past the shoes to a pair of skinny legs, skinnier than mine, then to a tight black mini. Above that is a crisp white shirt. And crowning the whole thing is a mop of the gingerest hair I’ve ever seen in my life.2003, Chrissie Glazebrook, “The Cadogan Hotel”, in Blue Spark Sisters, London: William Heinemann, →ISBN, page 22
- And her hair’s brilliant red. It’s even gingerer than ours.2005, Vera M. Black, chapter 8, in Trembling on the Brink, Ilfracombe, Devon: Arthur H. Stockwell Ltd., →ISBN, page 153
Having hair or fur of this color.
- a ginger tomcat
- A chorus of ‘Aaah’s rose as they would in an episode of The Royle Family, while the gingerest boy in school swung his legs on the worktop and pretended he was Jamaican to be more like his mate sitting next to him, who wasn’t Jamaican either, but had parents who were.2007, Lynsey Hanley, “The Wall in the Head”, in Estates: An Intimate History, London: Granta Books, →ISBN, page 151

Verb (1)

ginger (third-person singular simple present gingers, present participle gingering, simple past and past participle gingered)

(transitive) To add ginger to.
- They gingered the biscotti, black and whited the cookies and oated the meals.2009, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar
- The first breather of the day came when Naomi brought some gingered lemonade out to the barn.2013, Suzanne Woods Fisher, The Letters (The Inn at Eagle Hill Book #1): A Novel
(idiomatic, transitive) To enliven, to spice (up).
- The accident was an excuse merely to replace an old-fashioned regular with old-fashioned notions by an active, fire-eating young general who would ginger things up.1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance, Faber & Faber, published 2004, page 886
- Before an action began, he liked to make bold predictions as to its outcome; this was part of his way of gingering people up, of creating an aura of victory to come.2004, Eric Larrabee, Commander in Chief: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, His Lieutenants, and Their War, page 464
(transitive) To apply ginger to the anus of a horse to encourage it to carry its tail high and move in a lively fashion.
- If he had been gingered, he would have gone well. After I bought him, I gingered him.1850, William Percivall, editor, The Veterinarian, page 594
- Gingering is decided cruelty.1884, The British Veterinary Journal, volume 18, page 426
(Nigeria, transitive) To inspire (someone); to give a little boost to.
- These steps may not be immediately popular, but the society may have to bear with them until they succeed in gingering renewed interest and pride in the language so chosen.2002, K. K. Prah, Rehabilitating African Languages
- In conclusion, intensive campaigns should be done in relation to gingering the nomads' interest in education, improve their interaction with neighbours and encourage them to start considering a more sedentary pastoral life.2006, Africa e Mediterraneo: cultura, politica, economia, società

Adjective (2)

ginger (comparative more ginger or (rare) gingerer, superlative most ginger or (rare) gingerest)

(Canada, UK, US, regional) Very careful or cautious; also, delicate, sensitive.
- He’s going to get an interview about ten o’clock, making the old gentleman predict war, and we’ll get out the gingerest kind of a special on the strength of it!1899 April 1, Richard Stillman Powell [pseudonym; Ralph Henry Barbour], “The President and Tom Collins”, in The Saturday Evening Post, volume 171, number 40, Philadelphia, Pa.: The Curtis Publishing...
- Wherefore, although for my own car I want the “gingerest” possible engine, I realise that it has shortcomings for the general market and I would commend to designers the ideal of an engine that shall be as “woolly” as possible, so long as its artificially restricted dimensions shall not cause its...1921 January 29, W. Harold Johnson, “[The Automobile World.] My Ideal Small Car Specification”, in Country Life: The Journal for All Interested in Country Life & Country Pursuits, volume XLIX, number...
Synonyms:

gingerish, gingerly

Adverb

ginger (comparative more ginger, superlative most ginger)

In a very careful or cautious manner; also, delicately, sensitively.

Synonyms:

gingerly

Verb (2)

ginger (third-person singular simple present gingers, present participle gingering, simple past and past participle gingered)

To move gingerly, in a very careful and cautious manner.
- Spring training began on Christmas Day, when my cousin and I gingered onto the lot behind the fire station to try out our new spikes.1972 September 1, Paul Hemphill, “I Gotta Let the Kid Go”, in Life, volume 73, number 9, →ISSN, page 42
- She gingered her way into the river and timidly splashed into its waters.1979, Bill Marshall, Bukom, Longman, →ISBN, page 83

Noun (2)

ginger (plural gingers)

(Cockney, UK, slang) A homosexual.

Adjective (3)

ginger (not comparable)

(Cockney, UK, slang) Homosexual.

Proper noun capitalized: Ginger

Ginger

A female given name from English and nickname. Popularized by actress Ginger Rogers
(rare) A male nickname.
A given name for animals having ginger- or orange-coloured fur or feathers.

ginger meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

ginger in Hindi

spice: आदा ādā
plant: अदरक adrak

ginger in Tamil

spice: இஞ்சி iñci
plant: இஞ்சி iñci
flavor: இஞ்சி iñci

ginger in Marathi

spice: आले āle
plant: आले āle

ginger in Urdu

plant: ادرک adrak

More languagesFewer languages

ginger in Bengali: আদা ada
ginger in Telugu: అల్లము allamu, ఓల్లము ōllamu, ఆర్ద్రకము ārdrakamu, శృంగబేరము śr̥ṅgabēramu
ginger in Malayalam: ഇഞ്ചി iñci
ginger in Kannada: ಶುಂಠಿ śuṇṭhi
ginger in Punjabi: ਸੁੰਢ suṇḍh
ginger in Gujarati: આદું ādũ, અદરક adarak
ginger in Odia: ଅଦା adā
ginger in Sanskrit: आर्द्रक ārdraka
ginger in Sinhala: ඉඟුරු iⁿguru
ginger in Assamese: আদা ada
ginger in Nepali: अदुवा aduwā
ginger in Pashto: زنجبيل zanjabíl, زنجفيل zanǰafíl, زنجپيل zanjapíl, سونډى sunḍáy
ginger in Tagalog: luya
ginger in Arabic: زَنْجَبِيل zanjabīl, أَصْهَب ʔaṣhab
ginger in Malay: halia
ginger in Indonesian: jahe
ginger in Persian: زنجبیل zanjebil, شنگویر šangevir
ginger in Thai: ขิง kǐng
ginger in Vietnamese: gừng
ginger in Myanmar: ချင်း hkyang:
Dzongkha: ས་གཱ་ sa gā

Examples of ginger in a sentence

The party managers demanded more “ginger.”1919, John Maynard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, published 2007, page 77:
Maybe I was naive in thinking that baking with fizzy juice (soda, ginger, pop, whatever your regional name for the stuff is!) would be straightforward.2016 January 7, Amy, baking with granny.co.uk:
But as well as being a tough rugby player, Jammer [i.e., James Graham] also has the gingerest hair and palest skin in rugby (and possibly the world).2009, Sean Long with Nick Appleyard, “Sozzled in Spain”, in Longy: Booze, Brawls, Sex and Scandal – The Autobiography of the Wild Man of...
But now evolution has stepped in, the reds are starting to mutate into bright ginger versions of themselves – and they’re here to stay.2009 April 26, “Ginger squirrels pose new threat”, in Sunday Sport, Manchester: Sport Newspapers Limited, page 3:

All 40 example sentences with ginger

Synonyms of ginger

Forms of ginger

Noun
plural	gingers
Adjective
comparative	more ginger
superlative	most ginger
comparative (rare)	gingerer
superlative (rare)	gingerest
Verb
third-person singular present	gingers
present participle	gingering
past participle	gingered
past	gingered
Adverb
comparative	more ginger
superlative	most ginger

Plural of ginger: gingers

Origin of ginger

Inherited from Middle English gingere, alteration of gingivere, from Old English gingifer, gingiber (influenced by Old French gingembre), from Medieval Latin gingiber, zingiber, from Latin zingiberi, from Late Ancient Greek ζιγγίβερις (zingíberis), from Sauraseni Prakrit 𑀲𑀺𑀁𑀕𑀺𑀯𑁂𑀭 (siṃgivera), ultimately from Old Tamil 𑀇𑀜𑁆𑀘𑀺𑀯𑁂𑀭𑁆 (iñcivēr), a compound of 𑀇𑀜𑁆𑀘𑀺 (iñci, “ginger”) and 𑀯𑁂𑀭𑁆 (vēr, “root”) (compare modern Tamil இஞ்சிவேர் (iñcivēr), from இஞ்சி (iñci, “ginger”) + வேர் (vēr, “root”)).

Back-formation from gingerly (adverb).

Cockney rhyming slang: ginger beer, queer.

Words formed from ginger

Phrases with ginger

23 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with ginger

Questions about ginger

What does ginger mean?: Ginger means the pungent aromatic rhizome of a tropical Asian herb, Zingiber officinale, used as a spice and as a stimulant and acarminative.
What is ginger in Hindi?: Ginger in Hindi is आदा (ādā), अदरक (adrak). See Ginger meaning in Hindi.
How do you use ginger in a sentence?: The party managers demanded more “ginger.”
What part of speech is ginger?: Ginger can be a noun, an adjective, a verb or an adverb.
How do you pronounce ginger?: Ginger is pronounced /ˈdʒɪndʒə/ (UK).
What is the plural of ginger?: The plural of ginger is gingers.

Words near ginger in the dictionary

Adapted from Wiktionary: ginger (page history and authors); Ginger (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated: 2026-09-02

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-ginger.wav.

Cite this entry: “ginger.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/ginger. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.