food

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food

/fuːd/
[fuːd] UK
[fʊwd] UK
[fu̟(ː)d] US
[fʊwd] US
[fʉwd] British, Southern, Standard
[fʉːd] General South African
[fyːd] General South African
/fʊɖ/ India
/fʊd/

Sounds like FoD

Where it comes from

From Middle English fode, foode, from Old English fōda (“food”), from Proto-West Germanic *fōdō, from Proto-Germanic *fōdô (“food”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to guard, graze, feed”).

Cognate with Scots fuid (“food”), Low German föde, vöde (“food”), West Frisian fiedsel (“food”), Dutch voedsel (“food”) Danish føde (“food”), Swedish föda (“food”), Icelandic fæða, fæði (“food”), Gothic 𐍆𐍉𐌳𐌴𐌹𐌽𐍃 (fōdeins, “food”), Latin pānis (“bread, food”), Latin pāscō (“feed, nourish”, verb). Related to fodder, foster.

noun foods

uncountable, usually Any solid substance that can be consumed by living organisms, especially by eating, in order to sustain life. The innkeeper brought them food and drink.
Similar: belly-timber, chow, comestible, eats, feed, fodder, foodstuff, grub, nosh, nourishment, provender, scran
countable, usually A foodstuff, a type of food. Variation and changes in the trans fatty acid content of different foods, especially in processed foods, further complicate such estimates.
Similar: belly-timber, foodstuff, provender
figuratively, uncountable, usually Anything that nourishes or sustains. The man's inspiring speech gave us food for thought.
Multicultural London English, uncountable, usually Any illegal substance or illegal substances, drugs. What kind of things that you have. When I find out don't expect me to stop. I'll come for the P's that you stack. And come for the food that you blot.

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: nutrient, foodstuff, feed, feeding, feeder, aliment, chow, snack, gastronomic, edible, gastronomy, eats, eating, eater, petfood, provender

noun

Translations

Every language

noun any substance consumed by living organisms to sustain life

Español	alimento, comida, víveres, jama, manduca, manducatoria
한국어	음식 eumsik, 먹을 것 meogeul geot, 식량 singnyang, 먹이 meogi, 밥 bap, 진지 jinji
日本語	食べ物 tabemono, 食物 shokumotsu, 食料 shokuryō, 飯 meshi, 食品 shokuhin, 餌 esa
中文	食物 shíwù, 食品 shípǐn, 吃食 chīshi
हिन्दी	खाना khānā, भोजन bhojan, ग़िज़ा ġizā, गिजा gijā
Kiswahili	chakula
Português	comida, alimento
Français	nourriture, alimentation, manger, bouffe
Deutsch	Nahrung, Essen, Lebensmittel, Speise
Italiano	cibo, alimento, vitto
Ελληνικά	τροφή trofí, φαγητό fagitó, φαΐ faḯ
Română	aliment, mâncare, hrană
Русский	еда́ jedá, пи́ща píšča, пита́ние pitánije, корм korm, харчи́ xarčí, кормёжка kormjóžka
Tiếng Việt	thức ăn, đồ ăn, thực phẩm
العربية	طَعَام ṭaʕām, أَكْل ʔakl, غِذَاء ḡiḏāʔ
עברית	אֹכֶל ókhel, מָזוֹן mazón

noun anything intended to supply energy or nourishment of other forms

Kiswahili	chakula
Português	alimento
Italiano	cibo, alimento, nutrimento
Ελληνικά	τροφή trofí
Română	alimentare, nutriție
Русский	пи́ща píšča

noun foodstuff

Español	alimento, comida, vianda, jama, manduca, manducatoria
한국어	식품 sikpum
日本語	食物 shokumotsu
Kiswahili	chakula
Português	alimento
Français	aliment
Italiano	cibo, alimento
Ελληνικά	τρόφιμα trófima
Română	aliment, mâncare
Русский	еда́ jedá, корм korm, пи́ща píšča, пита́ние pitánije

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MLA

"food." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/food. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

food. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/food

Chicago

"food." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/food.

BibTeX

@misc{food_2026,
  title = {food},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/food},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}