By mid-afternoon, it's not unusual to feel hangry for a snack — perhaps some guac or a happy hour marg. Turns out this feeling is so popular that it's been added to the dictionary.
Language is constantly evolving and that means that dictionaries often have to account for new words and phrases. To that end, Merriam-Webster has just added more than 840 new words to its online dictionary, and a good chunk of them are food related!
Here are 14 food-related terms that made the cut — TODAY's Megyn Kelly is especially excited about one of them!
1. Avo
This is informal slang for, of course, avocado.
2. Dragon fruit
"A large usually oval to oblong fruit" that has "leathery skin with prominent scaly spikes and juicy flesh," especially "the fruit of a widely cultivated cactus" of Mexico and Central America that "usually has bright pink or red skin and white or sometimes red, mildly sweet flesh with numerous tiny black seeds."
TODAY's Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager tried the fruit in a popular dessert in New York City called "The Pink Lady" and thought it was interesting ...
3. Gochujang
This addictively delicious spicy paste is "used in Korean cuisine that is made from red chili peppers, glutinous rice, and fermented soybeans."
4. Guac
What do you do with all of those avos? Turn them into guac, of course. The word is slang for everyone’s favorite, guacamole.
5. Hophead
Love beer? Really love beer? While the slang for this word is a drug addict, the more common usage is a beer enthusiast, especially “one who is partial to hoppy beer and ale.”
6. Hangry
A very important word for anyone who has ever been “irritable or angry because of hunger.” Um, that's everyone.
"Hangry finally made its way in — finally!" TODAY's Megyn Kelly said on Friday.
7. Iftar
A meal taken by Muslims at sundown to break the daily fast during Ramadan.
8. Marg
This one is informal slang for margaritas — which go great with avo-laden guac, of course.
9. Mise en place
A French term for a "culinary process in which ingredients are prepared and organized (as in a restaurant kitchen) before cooking." Now try to pronounce it. Like this: meeeez uh plass.
10. Mocktail
A "usually iced drink made with any of various ingredients (such as juice, herbs, and soda water) but without alcohol," i.e., a nonalcoholic cocktail. Cheers to that.
11. Quaffable
This is often used to describe something that is "easy and enjoyable to drink," like a wine that goes down easily.
12. Wagyu
This pricey cut of steak can describe "any of four strains of a breed of black or red Japanese cattle valued for their highly marbled meat."
13. Zuke
That's short for zucchini, which brings us to ...
14. Zoodles
A long, thin strip of zucchini (or zukes!) that "resembles a string or narrow ribbon of pasta." Note, the use of the word "resembles."
Zoodles are easy to make with a spiralizer, a machine that transforms vegetables into thin strips in moments. Surprisingly, the word spiralizer hasn't made it into the dictionary — maybe next year?
Pasta purists may not consider zucchini noodles the real thing, but they sure are scrumdiddlyumptious — yes, that's a real word too! Look it up in the dictionary!