souse Hear it!

souse¹ Definition

souse (so̵us)

noun

  1. a pickled food, esp. the feet, ears, and head of a pig
  2. liquid used for pickling; brine
  3. the act of plunging into a liquid, esp. into brine for pickling
  4. Slang a drunkard

Etymology: ME sows < OFr souz < OHG sulza, brine, akin to salz, salt

transitive verb, intransitive verb soused, sous·ing

  1. to pickle
  2. to plunge or steep in a liquid
  3. to make or become soaking wet
  4. Slang to make or become intoxicated

souse² Definition

souse (so̵us)

noun

Falconry, Obsolete the act of swooping down on prey by a hawk, falcon, etc.

Etymology: altered < ME source < OFr sors, sourse, in the same sense: see source

transitive verb, intransitive verb soused, sous·ing

Falconry, Obsolete to swoop down (on)

souse Synonyms

souse

v.

  1. To soak

    drown, wet, dunk; see dip 1, immerse 1.

  2. To preserve

    pickle, marinate, brine; see preserve 3.

souse Usage Examples

Object

  • herring: We had soused herrings for starters, which were delicious.