coffee

[ kaw-fee, kof-ee ]
See synonyms for coffee on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a beverage consisting of a decoction or infusion of the roasted ground or crushed seeds (coffee beans ) of the two-seeded fruit (coffee berry ) of certain coffee trees.

  2. the seeds or fruit themselves.

  1. any tropical tree or shrub of the genus Coffea, of the madder family, especially C. arabica and C. canephora, cultivated commercially.: Compare Arabian coffee, robusta coffee.

  2. a cup of coffee: We ordered four coffees and three doughnuts.

  3. a social gathering at which coffee and other refreshments are served.

  4. medium to dark brown.

adjective

Origin of coffee

1
1590–1600; <Italian caffè<Turkish kahve<Arabic qahwah

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use coffee in a sentence

  • These were more successful, and became the progenitors of all the coffees of the Dutch East Indies.

    All About Coffee | William H. Ukers
  • This plant subsequently became the progenitor of most of the coffees of the West Indies and America.

    All About Coffee | William H. Ukers
  • Analysis of green and roasted coffees shows them to possess between 12 percent and 20 percent fat.

    All About Coffee | William H. Ukers
  • So much trouble is not encountered with coffee-extract powders—the so-called "soluble" or "instant" coffees.

    All About Coffee | William H. Ukers

British Dictionary definitions for coffee

coffee

/ (ˈkɒfɪ) /


noun
    • a drink consisting of an infusion of the roasted and ground or crushed seeds of the coffee tree

    • (as modifier): coffee grounds

  1. Also called: coffee beans the beanlike seeds of the coffee tree, used to make this beverage

  1. short for coffee tree

    • a medium to dark brown colour

    • (as adjective): a coffee carpet

  2. wake up and smell the coffee See wake 1 (def. 7)

Origin of coffee

1
C16: from Italian caffè, from Turkish kahve, from Arabic qahwah coffee

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012