Ponzu

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A tangy Japanese sauce made from soy sauce blended with citrus juice, often used as a dipping sauce or seasoning
2. A savoury condiment from Japan that combines soy sauce with the sharp flavour of citrus such as yuzu or lemon
3. Japanese seasoning based on soy and citrus, commonly served with grilled foods, sashimi or hot pot dishes

Etymology: The Japanese word ponzu, a sharp citrus-flavoured soy sauce, owes its name to a drink. It comes from the Dutch "pons", meaning punch, the beverage, which the Dutch borrowed from English. Punch in turn goes back to the Sanskrit "páñca", meaning five, a reference to the five ingredients traditionally mixed into that kind of drink. The chain of borrowing runs through trade. Dutch merchants trading in Japan brought the word with them, and Japanese speakers adapted it as "ponzu" for a sour, citrusy seasoning, so a term for an alcoholic mixed drink ended up naming a condiment. The Japanese word is only the middle link: the same Sanskrit root sits behind English "five" and "fin", a slang word for a five-unit banknote, which shows the number was shared across many languages.