Brandywine

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A strong alcoholic spirit made by distilling wine ; a river that forms part of the border between Pennsylvania and Delaware
2. Brandy produced through the distillation of wine ; the waterway flowing through the Brandywine Valley in the northeastern United States
3. A potent spirit created by distilling fermented grapes ; a major stream in Pennsylvania that flows into Delaware

Etymology: Brandywine is a clear case of a borrowed word, not a native one. It came into English from Dutch "brandewijn", which is itself a compound of "brande", meaning burnt or distilled, and "wijn", meaning wine. The Dutch name described the process: wine heated in a still until its vapour condensed into a stronger liquor. In other words, the word literally means "burnt wine," a name for distilled spirit made from wine. The word is a doublet of "brännvin", the Swedish term for spirits, which came from the same Dutch source. Two languages took the same Dutch phrase and each shaped it to its own sounds, leaving English with a form that keeps the wine and the fire in its name.