Everyday LifeGreek → English
Licorice
/ˈlɪkərɪʃ/noun
A black confection, and the flavouring made from the root of a Mediterranean legume.
The Greek roots
γλυκύς
glykýs
sweet
ῥίζα
rhíza
root
Literally: “sweet root”
The story of the word
Latin flattened γλυκύρριζα into liquiritia, apparently pulled sideways by liquor, and Old French turned that into licoresse. English kept two spellings from that muddle, liquorice in Britain and licorice in America. The sweet half of the Greek word also gives glucose, glycerine and glycogen.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → Latin → Old French → English
- First recorded
- 13th century
Same family
glucoseglycerineglycogenrhizome
In a sentence
He kept a bag of salty licorice in the glovebox and offered it to nobody.