cider

noun

ci·​der ˈsī-dər How to pronounce cider (audio)
1
: fermented apple juice often made sparkling by carbonation or fermentation in a sealed container
2
: the expressed juice of fruit (such as apples) used as a beverage or for making other products (such as applejack)

Examples of cider in a Sentence

a cup of apple cider
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Mulled cider adds spices and citrus to apple cider, then heats the mixture to infuse those flavors. — Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 27 Aug. 2026 One day of syrup-making now sets up a week of cafe-quality fall drinks at home — and a slow cooker of cider covers your holiday hosting. — Lauren Schuster, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2026 Across the peninsula, farms welcome visitors for cider-making, corn mazes, and seasonal markets. — Taryn Shorr-McKee, Midwest Living, 26 Aug. 2026 Bar Americano, located on the lawn between the Air and Space Museum and the National Gallery of Art, sells several types of alcoholic beverages, including an IPA, wheat, lager, sour and cider. — Mike Stunson, USA Today, 24 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for cider

Word History

Etymology

Middle English sider, sedyr, cidre "alcoholic drink (in Biblical translations and references), cider," borrowed from Anglo-French sizre, ciser, cydre, going back to Gallo-Romance *cīsera, by metathesis form of Late Latin (Vulgate) sīcera "alcoholic drink," borrowed from Greek (Septuagint) síkera, borrowed from Hebrew shēkhār, from a Semitic base š-k-r, whence Hebrew shākhar "become drunk," Arabic sikara

Note: The medieval French form sizre is attested once, in the 12th-century Cambridge, or Eadwine Psalter, where it appears as a translation of the Latin siceram in Psalm 68:14 (the Vulgate has vinum in this passage). (For other medieval outcomes and modern dialect forms see Französisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, v. 11, pp. 589-90.) Presumably *cīs(ĕ)ra yielded *tsizdra, which with loss of the internal sibilant yielded cidre (see Pierre Fouché, Phonétique historique du français, vol. 3 [Paris: Klincksieck, 1966], p. 822). Latin sīcera and its vernacular outcomes were likely disseminated and applied to the fermented juice of fruit, especially apples, in monasteries, particularly in non-wine-producing areas of Europe such as Normandy; Norman localization would also account for the thorough penetration of the word into Anglo-French.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cider was in the 13th century

Phrases Containing cider

Rhymes for cider

See All Rhymes for cider

Browse Nearby Words

Cid, El
cider
cider apple
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Cite this Entry

“Cider.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cider. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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Kids Definition

cider

noun
ci·​der ˈsīd-ər How to pronounce cider (audio)
: the juice pressed out of fruit (as apples) and used especially as a drink and in the making of vinegar

More from Merriam-Webster on cider

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about cider

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