Broth

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /bɹɔθ/

Definitions

1. A liquid made by simmering meat, vegetables, or fish in water, typically served as a soup or used as a base for cooking
2. A warm, flavorful liquid created by boiling meat, vegetables, or fish in water, often utilized in soups or as a cooking foundation
3. A nourishing liquid derived from simmering various ingredients like meat or vegetables in water, frequently included in soup recipes or as a culinary base

Etymology: Broth is one of the oldest food words in English, and its name comes from a verb for boiling. Its Old English form, "broþ", descends from a Germanic root meaning to seethe or roil, the same idea behind "brew." The word therefore named the result of a process before it named the dish: the liquid that came off something simmering in water. The "-th" ending is a suffix that turns a verb into a noun for the result of an action, as in "growth" from "grow" or "birth" from "bear." Broth is essentially "brew" with that ending, so the noun and the verb have been related since before English was written down. Over time the word narrowed in some uses and widened in others. Today it covers anything from a clear stock to a thick, grain-heavy soup, and cooks still use it as the base for sauces and stews.

Synonyms: soup, stock