Soda

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈsəʊdə/

Definitions

1. A carbonated beverage made by dissolving carbon dioxide gas in water and typically sweetened with sugar or artificial sweetener
2. A sweetened, effervescent drink produced from carbonated water and flavorings, often served cold and enjoyed for its refreshing qualities
3. A bubbly drink created through carbonation, frequently sweetened and flavored to enhance its taste and served chilled for consumption

Etymology: Soda started out as a plant-based word far from any fizzy drink. The Arabic "suwaydāʔ" ("little black one") was a name for the dark, heart-shaped spot near the core of the blood, and that Arabic term passed through medieval Latin and then Italian. Medieval Arabic physicians and Latin writers connected it to melancholy, the "black bile" the humours theory blamed for low spirits, so the word's early life was tied to ideas of gloom rather than refreshment. From that same Arabic root, Italian gained "soda," which came to denote the sodium-rich plants burned to produce alkaline ash, and that alkali sense is where the word's chemical meanings come from. English borrowed the word from Italian. The fizzy drink sense is an ellipsis of "soda water," meaning carbonated water, so the sweet drink we call soda is a shortened version of a name for plain sparkling water.

Synonyms: soft drink, carbonated beverage, pop, fizzy drink, cola