Salmagundi

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ËŒsal.məˈɡʌn.di/
• US IPA: /ËŒsæl.məˈɡʌn.di/

Alternative forms

• solomongundy
• Solomon Gundy

Origin

From French salmigondis ("seasoned salt meats"), from Middle French salmigondin, probably related to Middle French salomene ("hodgepodge of meats or fish cooked in wine"), from Old French salemine.

Full definition of salmagundi

Noun

1. A food consisting of chopped meat and pickled herring, with oil, vinegar, pepper, and onions.
2. Hence, any mixture of various ingredients; an olio or medley; a potpourri; a miscellany.
• 2002, Colin Jones, The Great Nation, Penguin 2003, p. 544:Partly too it reflected the nature of Revolutionary politics throughout the 1790s, which was invariably a kind of inspired bricolage, which involved yoking together a wide range of pre-existent elements into an unanticipated and constantly changing salmagundi of political forms.
• 14 September 2013, Jane Shilling, The Golden Thread: the Story of Writing, by Ewan Clayton, review [print edition: Illuminating language], This is not, however, a mere salmagundi of alphabetical arcana.

Synonyms

• (mixture of various ingredients) miscellany, olio, potpourri