Curry

Pronunciation

• enPR: kÅ­rʹē, IPA: /ˈkÊŒri/
• Rhymes: -ÊŒri

1747 (as currey, first published recipe for the dish in English

Hannah Glasse, Glasse’s The Art of Cookery, 1747

), from Tamil கறி, influenced by existing Middle English cury ("cooking"),

The Origins of ‘Curry’ (Is it really English?)

from French cuire ("to cook") (from which also cuisine), from Vulgar Latin cocere, from Latin coquere, present active infinitive of coquō.

Earlier cury found in 1390 cookbook Forme of Cury (Forms of Cooking) by court chefs of Richard II of England.

Noun

1. One of a family of dishes originating from South Asian cuisine, flavoured by a spiced sauce.
2. A spiced sauce or relish, especially one flavoured with curry powder.
3. Curry powder

Synonyms

• (dish) Ruby Murray rhyming slang
• (curry powder) curry powder

Derived terms

• curry leaf
• curry paste
• curry powder
• currywurst
• give someone curry

Full definition of curry

Verb

1. (transitive) To cook or season with curry powder.

From Middle English currayen, from Old French correer 'to prepare', presumably from Vulgar Latin conredare, from com- (a form of con- 'together') + some Germanic base verb

Verb

1. (transitive) To groom (a horse); to dress or rub down a horse with a curry comb.
• Beaumont and Fletcher (1603-1625)Your short horse is soon curried.
• 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, Mr. Pratt's Patients Chapter 11, One day I was out in the barn and he drifted in. I was currying the horse and he set down on the wheelbarrow and begun to ask questions.
2. (transitive) To dress (leather) after it is tanned by beating, rubbing, scraping and colouring.
3. (transitive) To beat, thrash; to drub.
• Beaumont and Fletcher (1603-1625)I have seen him curry a fellow's carcass handsomely.
• 1663, Hudibras, by Samuel Butler, part 1,...By setting brother against brother
  To claw and curry one another.
4. (transitive) To try to win or gain (favour) by flattering.

Usage notes

The sense "To win or gain favour" is most frequently used in the phrases "to curry favour (with)" and "to curry someone's favour",

Derived terms

• curry favor

From Haskell Curry, a computer scientist

Verb

1. (transitive, computing) To perform currying upon.

Possibly derived from currier, a common 16-18th century form of courier, as if to ride post, to post. Possibly influenced by scurry.

Verb

1. (intransitive, obsolete) To scurry; to ride or run hastily.
2. (transitive, obsolete) To cover (a distance); (of a projectile) to traverse (its range).
• 1608, George Chapman, The Conspiracie, and Tragedie of Charles Duke of Byron 2.245I am not hee that can ... by midnight leape my horse, curry seauen miles.
• 1662, Thomas Salusbury, Galileo's Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Dialogue Two)All these shots shall curry or finish their ranges in times equal to each other.
3. (transitive, obsolete) To hurry.
• 1676, Andrew Marvell, Mr. Smirke 34A sermon is soon curryed over.