spicy

English

Alternative forms

• spicey

Etymology

From spice +‎ -y, attested since the 16th century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈspaɪsi/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aɪsi

Adjective

spicy (comparative spicier, superlative spiciest)

1. Of, pertaining to, or containing spice.

   He prepared a spicy casserole.

2. Of a flavor, provoking a burning sensation due to the presence of capsaicin or a similar chemical.

   This curry is too spicy for me. I can't eat it.

   • 2015 August 31, Jiyeon Lee and Sol Han, “7 super spicy South Korean dishes – and tips for eating them”, in CNN‎^[1]:

     This place is actually known for serving the Donkatsu of Death, aka the Drop-Dead Donkatsu, by far the spiciest dish I’ve ever endured.

   • 2021 September 17, Noelle Ike, “Truff’s new white truffle hot sauce is even hotter, and perfect for amping up mealtime”, in CNN‎^[2]:

     That’s why we knew we had to get our hands on Truff’s latest launch: White Hotter. It’s an even spicier take on the fan-favorite (and perhaps our favorite), White Truffle Hot Sauce.

   • 2024 June 2, Parija Kavilanz, “‘Swicy’ is the hottest trend in food right now”, in CNN‎^[3]:

     “I think we are going to see a lot more of this,” said Lyons Wyatt. “There is a push now and we do see both unit and dollar growth of spicy and swicy products.”

3. Of a food, flavor, or odor, tangy, zesty, or pungent.

   She breathed in the strong, spicy aroma.

   • 1769, Firishta, translated by Alexander Dow, Tales translated from the Persian of Inatulla of Delhi, volume I, Dublin: P. and W. Wilson et al., page iv:

     The breath of the mountain heifer was fragrant as the gales of Sirendiep, by feeding on ſpicy herbs.

4. Of an expression or behavior, vigorous; colorful; stimulating.

   He is known for his spicy political commentary.

5. (informal, idiomatic) Scandalous.
   • 1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:

     When one side or the other had written any particularly spicy dispatch, news of it was sure to slip out.

6. (Internet slang) Risky; mildly aggressive or dangerous.

   Look at the little wildcub! That's one spicy ball of fur.

7. (Internet slang) Risqué, sexy, racy; mildly pornographic.

   I don't want my children to see the spicy images on this web site.

Synonyms

• (provoking a burning sensation): hot, spicy-hot, piquant

Derived terms

• neurospicy
• spicily
• spiciness
• spicy cough
• spicy pillow
• spicy tooth

Translations

containing spice

• Arabic: مُتَبَّل (mutabbal)

  Hijazi Arabic: مُتَبَّل (mutabbal)

• Armenian: կծու (hy) (kcu)
• Azerbaijani: ədviyyatlı, ədviyyəli
• Belarusian: во́стры (be) (vóstry)
• Bhojpuri: मसालेदार (masālēdār)
• Bulgarian: подправен (bg) (podpraven)
• Burmese: စပ် (my) (cap)
• Catalan: especiat
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 辣 (laat⁶)

  Hokkien: 薟 / 莶 (zh-min-nan) (hiam)

  Mandarin: 辣 (zh) (là)

• Dutch: gekruid (nl), kruidig (nl)
• Finnish: mausteinen (fi), maustettu (fi)
• French: épicé (fr)
• Georgian: ცხარე (cxare)
• German: würzig (de), gewürzt (de), pikant (de)
• Greek: καρυκευμένος (el) m (karykevménos), πικάντικος (el) m (pikántikos)
• Hebrew: מתובל m (metubál)
• Hungarian: fűszeres (hu)
• Icelandic: sterkur (is), kryddaður
• Isan: please add this translation if you can
• Italian: speziato (it)
• Japanese: 辛い (ja) (からい, karai)
• Khmer: ហឹរ (km) (haə)
• Korean: 맵다 (ko) (maepda)
• Kyrgyz: ачуу (ky) (acuu), өткүр (ky) (ötkür)
• Lao: ເຜັດ (phet)
• Latin: acutus (la)
• Lü: ᦵᦕᧆ (ṗhed)
• Macedonian: зачинет (začinet)
• Malay: berempah
• Maori: puhahana
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تُنْد (fa) (tond)

• Polish: pikantny (pl)
• Portuguese: temperado (pt), condimentado (pt)
• Romanian: condimentat (ro), asezonat (ro)
• Russian: пря́ный (ru) (prjányj), о́стрый (ru) (óstryj)
• Scottish Gaelic: spìosrach
• Shan: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: condimentado (es), aliñado (es), (having a sharp flavor) picante (es), sazonado (es), aromático (es)
• Swedish: kryddig (sv), kryddstark (sv)
• Tamil: please add this translation if you can
• Tangut: 𘟋 (*zar¹)
• Thai: เผ็ด (th) (pèt)
• Tibetan: please add this translation if you can
• Turkish: baharatlı (tr), baharlı (tr)
• Tutong: pelos
• Ukrainian: пря́ний (prjányj), го́стрий (uk) (hóstryj)
• Vietnamese: có gia vị (vi)
• Welsh: sbeisiog, sbeislyd (cy)
• White Hmong: please add this translation if you can
• Yiddish: בשׂמימדיק (besomemdik)
• Zazaki: tun (diq)
• Zhuang: please add this translation if you can
• Zyphe: hei

providing a burning sensation due to chilies and other spices

• Arabic: حَار (ar) (ḥār)

  Egyptian Arabic: حَرَّاق (ḥarrāʔ)

  Gulf Arabic: سبايسي m (sbāysi. spāysi)

  Hijazi Arabic: حَرَّاق (ḥarrāg), حار (ḥār)

  Lebanese Arabic: حار (ar) (ḥārr)

  Moroccan Arabic: حار (ar) (ḥārr)

  South Levantine Arabic: حار (ḥārr), بيحْرِق (béḥreg), حَرَّاق (ḥarrāg)

  Tunisian Arabic: حار (ar) (ḥārr)

• Armenian: կծու (hy) (kcu)
• Azerbaijani: tünd
• Bulgarian: пика́нтен (bg) (pikánten)
• Catalan: picant (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 辣 (zh) (là)

• Czech: ostrý (cs)
• Dutch: scherp (nl), pikant (nl)
• Finnish: tulinen (fi)
• German: scharf (de)
• Hebrew: חריף (he) m (kharíf)
• Hungarian: csípős (hu)
• Icelandic: sterkur (is)
• Indonesian: pedas (id)
• Irish: te
• Italian: piccante (it)
• Japanese: 辛い (ja) (からい, karai)
• Malay: pedas (ms)
• Mansi:

  Northern Mansi: пе̄лп (pēlp)

• Maori: kakā, puhahana
• Polish: ostry (pl)
• Portuguese: picante (pt)
• Romanian: iute (ro)
• Russian: о́стрый (ru) (óstryj)
• Scottish Gaelic: spìosrach
• Spanish: picante (es), picoso (es), alampante
• Tagalog: maanghang (tl)
• Vietnamese: cay (vi)
• Welsh: sbeislyd (cy)

tangy or pungent

• Albanian: pikant
• Arabic: حِرِّيف (ḥirrīf), حَارّ (ar) (ḥārr), مُتَبَّل (mutabbal)
• Armenian: կծու (hy) (kcu)
• Azerbaijani: ədviyyəli
• Belarusian: во́стры (be) (vóstry)
• Bengali: মশলাদার (mosladar)
• Bulgarian: лют (bg) (ljut)
• Burmese: စပ် (my) (cap), မာလာ (my) (mala)
• Catalan: picant (ca)
• Chamicuro: chawa
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 辣 (laat⁶), 辛辣 (san¹ laat⁶)

  Mandarin: 辣 (zh) (là), 辛辣 (zh) (xīnlà)

• Czech: ostrý (cs), pikantní
• Danish: pikant, stærk (da), krydret
• Dutch: pikant (nl), pittig (nl)
• Estonian: pikantne, vürtsikas
• Finnish: pistävä (fi)
• French: épicé (fr), piquant (fr), pimenté (fr)
• Georgian: ცხარე (cxare)
• German: scharf (de) (hot), würzig (de) (herbal), pikant (de)
• Greek: αψύς (el) m (apsýs)
• Hebrew: חָרִיף (he) (kharíf)
• Hindi: मसालेदार (hi) (masāledār), तीखा (hi) (tīkhā)
• Hungarian: fűszeres (hu)
• Icelandic: sterkur (is)
• Indonesian: pedas (id)
• Irish: láidir
• Isan: please add this translation if you can
• Italian: piccante (it)
• Japanese: 辛い (ja) (からい, karai), スパイシー (ja) (supaishī)
• Kazakh: ащы (aşy)
• Khmer: ហឹរ (km) (haə)
• Korean: 맵다 (ko) (maepda)
• Kyrgyz: ачуу (ky) (acuu)
• Lao: ເຜັດ (phet)
• Latvian: ass (lv)
• Lithuanian: aštrus
• Lü: ᦵᦕᧆ (ṗhed)
• Macedonian: лут (lut), пика́нтен (pikánten)
• Malay: pedas (ms)
• Maori: pūhahana
• Mongolian:

  Cyrillic: халуун (mn) (xaluun)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: pikant, sterk (no), krydret

• Persian:

  Iranian Persian: تُنْد (fa) (tond)

• Polish: ostry (pl), pikantny (pl)
• Portuguese: apimentado (pt), picante (pt)
• Quechua: haya, jaya
• Romanian: picant (ro)
• Russian: о́стрый (ru) (óstryj), пря́ный (ru) (prjányj)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: љут

  Roman: ljut (sh)

• Shan: please add this translation if you can
• Slovak: ostrý, pikantný
• Slovene: pekoč, pikanten (sl), začinjen
• Spanish: picante (es)
• Swedish: skarp (sv), stark (sv), pikant (sv), kryddig (sv), kryddstark (sv)
• Tagalog: maanghang
• Tajik: тунд (tund)
• Tamil: please add this translation if you can
• Thai: เผ็ด (th) (pèt)
• Tibetan: ཁ་ཚ་པོ (kha tsha po)
• Turkish: çeşnili (tr), baharatlı (tr), acı (tr)
• Ukrainian: го́стрий (uk) (hóstryj), пря́ний (prjányj)
• Urdu: مَسالے دار (masāle dār), تِیکھا (tīkhā), تیز (ur) (tez)
• Uyghur: ئاچچىق (achchiq)
• Uzbek: achchiq (uz), oʻtkir (uz)
• Vietnamese: cay (vi)
• Welsh: sbeislyd (cy)
• White Hmong: please add this translation if you can
• Zhuang: manh

vigorous, colorful

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: pisteliäs (fi)
• Greek: ζωηρός (el) m (zoïrós)
• Hungarian: borsos (hu), zamatos (hu)
• Japanese: 辛口の (ja) (からくちの, karakuchi no), とげのある (toge no aru)
• Russian: энерги́чный (ru) (energíčnyj), живо́й (ru) (živój)

racy

• Bulgarian: пика́нтен (bg) (pikánten)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Dutch: pikant (nl)
• Finnish: pornahtava (fi)
• German: pikant (de)
• Greek: τολμηρός (el) m (tolmirós), καυτός (el) m (kaftós)
• Hungarian: pikáns (hu)
• Japanese: 刺激的な (ja) (しげきてきな, shigekiteki na)
• Macedonian: пика́нтен (pikánten)
• Malay: gatal (ms)
• Polish: pikantny (pl)
• Romanian: picant (ro)
• Russian: пика́нтный (ru) (pikántnyj), неприли́чный (ru) (neprilíčnyj) (indecent)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Italian: ^{(please verify)} speziato (it)
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} caliente (es)

See also

Basic tastes in English (layout · text)
sweet	sour	salty	bitter	spicy	savory

References

• Noah Webster (1828), “spicy”, in An American Dictionary of the English Language: […], volume II (J–Z), New York, N.Y.: […] S. Converse; printed by Hezekiah Howe […], →OCLC.
• “spicy”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• "spicy" in Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary (Cambridge University Press, 2007)
• “spicy”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• Oxford English Dictionary, second edition (1989)
• Random House Webster's Unabridged Electronic Dictionary (1987-1996)

Anagrams

• Piscy

Lower Sorbian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈspʲi.t͡sɨ/
• Rhymes: -it͡sɨ
• Syllabification: spi‧cy

Adjective

spicy

1. sleeping, asleep
2. dormant (e.g. of a volcano)

Declension

Declension of spicy

	singular					dual			plural
	masculine		neuter	feminine		virile	nonvirile		virile	nonvirile
	animate	inanimate
nominative vocative	spicy		spice	spica		spicej			spice
genitive	spicego spiceg¹			spiceje spicej¹		spiceju			spicych
dative	spicemu spicem¹			spicej		spicyma			spicym
accusative	spicego spiceg¹	spicy	spice	spicu		spiceju	spicej		spice, spicych	spice
instrumental	spicym			spiceju spicej¹		spicyma			spicymi
locative	spicem spicym²			spicej		spicyma			spicych

¹ poetic, colloquial
² obsolete, dialectal

Participle

spicy

1. past active participle of spaś

Declension

Declension of spicy

	singular					dual			plural
	masculine		neuter	feminine		virile	nonvirile		virile	nonvirile
	animate	inanimate
nominative vocative	spicy		spice	spica		spicej			spice
genitive	spicego spiceg¹			spiceje spicej¹		spiceju			spicych
dative	spicemu spicem¹			spicej		spicyma			spicym
accusative	spicego spiceg¹	spicy	spice	spicu		spiceju	spicej		spice, spicych	spice
instrumental	spicym			spiceju spicej¹		spicyma			spicymi
locative	spicem spicym²			spicej		spicyma			spicych

¹ poetic, colloquial
² obsolete, dialectal

Synonyms

• spijucy

References

• Muka, Arnošt (1921, 1928), “spicy”, in Słownik dolnoserbskeje rěcy a jeje narěcow (in German), St. Petersburg, Prague: ОРЯС РАН, ČAVU; Reprinted Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag, 2008
• Starosta, Manfred (1999), “spicy”, in Dolnoserbsko-nimski słownik / Niedersorbisch-deutsches Wörterbuch (in German), Bautzen: Domowina-Verlag