peppercorn
Americannoun
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the berry of the pepper plant, Piper nigrum, dried and used as a condiment, in pickling, etc.
-
anything very small or insignificant.
adjective
noun
-
the small dried berry of the pepper plant ( Piper nigrum )
-
something trifling
Other Word Forms
- peppercornish adjective
- peppercorny adjective
Etymology
Origin of peppercorn
before 1000; Middle English pepercorn; Old English piporcorn. See pepper, corn 1
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As part of the government's reforms, ground rent will be capped at £250, before falling to a "peppercorn" rate - effectively zero - after 40 years.
From BBC
He said setting the limit at a peppercorn scenario would be his preferred choice but that he could accept a £250 cap due to the "risk of elongated legal challenge".
From BBC
There was also a token "peppercorn" payment, which the Crown Estate notes is standard practice for long leases, where there's an advance payment in lieu of rent.
From BBC
The real zing comes from her addition of toasted and crushed Sichuan peppercorns.
Revelations Andrew was living in a 30-room mansion in Windsor on a yearly rent of “one peppercorn” have seen calls for greater transparency and the prospect of a public accounts committee inspecting royal funding arrangements.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
