root beer en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /ˈɹut ˌbɪɹ/ (US)
- (US) audio
- /ˈɹuːt ˌbɪə/ (UK)
Etymology
The term is attested since before the lifetime of Charles Elmer Hires, but he is widely credited with popularizing it much further than it had previously been; his proprietary beverage was inspired by an earlier root tea, and he planned to sell it under that name, but he changed its name to broaden the sales appeal. For more, see Wikipedia at root beer § History.
Meanings
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(countable, uncountable) A beverage, most often a carbonated soft drink made from a combination of vanilla, cherry tree bark, licorice root, sarsaparilla root, sassafras root bark, nutmeg, anise, and molasses, among other things.
In 1919, when Roy Allen and Frank Wright started selling their new root beer beverage to a thirsty America, national Prohibition was taking its grip on the country. Their timing couldn't have been better. No longer able to legally drink real beer, thirsty patriots had to settle for this sweet, foamy concoction derived from roots, herbs, and berries.
2002, Todd Wilbur, Top Secret Recipes, Penguin, →ISBN:
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(countable, uncountable) A dark reddish-brown color, similar to the drink.
[…]most of our bucks have antlers that are varying degrees of brown, from a deep rich root beer shade to walnut to even light amber.
2006, Tim Lewis, Bows, Swamps, Whitetails, page 28:I just keep staring at all the ink we have, that wild variety of color, everything from rootbeer, midnight blue and cochineal to mauve, light doe, lilac, south sea green, maize, even pelican black, all line up in these plastic caps[…]
2000, Mark Z. Danielewski, House of Leaves, page 26:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| root beers | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| rootbeer | alternative | lexicographic |
Coordinates
birch beer · sarsaparilla · root tea · ginger beer
Translations (27)
sl zeliščno pivo (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · th รูตเบียร์ (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · ko 루트비어 (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · fr racinette (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · el ριζομπύρα (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · ca cervesa d'arrels (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · pt root beer (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · es cerveza de raíz (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · cmn 根啤 (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · cmn 根汁汽水 (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · de Root Beer (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · fi juuriolut (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · pl piwo korzenne (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · pt cerveja de raízes (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · tr kök birası (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · yi וואָרצלביר (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · ru корнево́е пи́во (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · pt cerveja de raiz (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · de Wurzelbier (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · yi רוטביר (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · ru рутбир (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · cmn 沙士 (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · vi xá xị (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · eo radikbiero (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · id rutbir (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · ja ルートビア (beverage with sarsaparilla root) · it birra di radice (beverage with sarsaparilla root)
wikipedia: root beer#History · wikipedia: Charles Elmer Hires