As a noun, pepper usually means black pepper, a hot spice made from the dried berries of a tropical plant, or bell peppers, which are mild vegetables. As a verb, “to pepper” can mean to cover something with many small hits or to sprinkle it with small amounts of something.
“Pepper” comes from Old English *pipor*, from Latin *piper*, from Greek *peperi*, all from an older Indian word related to Sanskrit *pippalī*, meaning “long pepper.” The spice traveled far, and its name traveled with it.
Pepper was once so rare and valuable that it was used like money—rent and dowries could be paid in peppercorns. That’s why we say things like “peppering” something with shots or questions: the spice’s tiny grains became a pattern for ‘lots of little hits.’
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