bourbon
English · Français · Deutsch · Italiano · Português · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
bourbon¹
- /ˈbɜː(ɹ).bən/
- /ˈbʊə(ɹ).bən/
- /ˈbɔː(ɹ).bən/
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)bən, -ʊə(ɹ)bən, -ɔː(ɹ)bən
Where it comes from
From bourbon whiskey, originally Bourbon whiskey, of disputed provenance. Generally taken to derive from Bourbon County, Kentucky, but possibly also from Bourbon Street in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Both derive from the French Bourbon dynasty, named for the lordship of French Bourbon l'Archambault. The town's name derives from Borvo, a local Celtic deity associated with hot springs, from Proto-Celtic *borvo (“froth, foam”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to be hot, boil”). See also Borvo.
noun bourbons
- A whiskey distilled in the United States from a mixture of grains in which at least 51% is corn, aged in charred, new oak barrels.
- A serving of bourbon whiskey. It concerns the gnomelike quality of the average American at a party. I have been to many parties where staid American business men have been transformed by a few ryes or bourbons into unpredictable gremlins out for adventure.
- A Bourbon biscuit.
Similar: bourbon and branch, bourbon cream, Bourbon whiskey, bourbon whiskey
Bourbon²
- /ˈbʊə(ɹ).bən/
- /ˈbɔː(ɹ).bən/
- /ˈbɜː(ɹ).bən/
Rhymes with -ʊə(ɹ)bən, -ɔː(ɹ)bən, -ɜː(ɹ)bən
Where it comes from
The French Bourbon dynasty is named for the lordship of Bourbon l'Archambault. The town's name derives from Gaulish Borvo, a local Celtic deity associated with hot springs, from Proto-Celtic *borvo (“froth, foam”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰrewh₁- (“to be hot, boil”). Compare brew and fervent.
The subsidiary senses derive from the dynasty's name.
proper noun
- A European dynasty which reigns in Spain and formerly ruled the Kingdom of France.
- A surname from French.
- A Bourbon Democrat. It was "a fundamental impossibility" for a black person to be a Bourbon, white-supremacist Democrat, but a black individual could very well become a "progressive Democrat."
- A white conservative, particularly in the context of opposition to equal rights for black people. For the Bourbon White elite and their allies, the intimidation of the Black laborers and farmers was necessary to prevent their political involvement and to maintain their subjugated location in the economy.
- A county in Kentucky, see Bourbon County.
- A street in New Orleans, Louisiana; in full, Bourbon Street.
- The island of Réunion.
- A town in Indiana.
- A city in Missouri.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: whiskey, whisky, liquor, booze, parma, conde, scotch, alcohol, turkey, constable, vendee, hapsburg, conti, elysee, palais, vendome
noun
Similar: bourbon and branch, bourbon cream, Bourbon whiskey, bourbon whiskey
Translations
Talk about this word "bourbon." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/bourbon. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. bourbon. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/bourbon "bourbon." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/bourbon.Cite this
@misc{bourbon_2026,
title = {bourbon},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/bourbon},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
