capsaicin

C3A1P3S1A1I1C3I1N1
/kæpˈseɪəsən//kæpˈseɪsən/

noun

A chemical compound found in chilli peppers, which is responsible for their piquancy.

OriginGerman Capsicin ← New Latin capsicum →
UncommonScrabble 15
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Meanings

nouncapsaicin (usually uncountable, plural capsaicins)

plural capsaicins

  1. uncountableusuallychemistryA chemical compound found in chilli peppers, which is responsible for their piquancy.

Origin

  1. German-in
  2. New Latincapsicum
  3. GermanCapsicin
  4. Englishcapsaicin

Arbitrary alteration of earlier capsicine, capsicin (“material extracted from cayenne pepper”), presumably to prevent confusion, from German Capsicin, from New Latin capsicum + German -in. Name introduced by John Clough Thresh (1850–1932) in “Capsaicin, the Active Principle of Capsicum Fruits”.

More words from German, New Latin

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan capsaïcina
  • capsaïcinachemical compound
Chinese Mandarin 辣椒素, 辣椒鹼 /辣椒碱
  • 辣椒素 (làjiāosù)chemical compound
  • 辣椒鹼 /辣椒碱 (làjiāojiǎn)chemical compound
Czech kapsaicin
  • kapsaicinchemical compound
Finnish kapsaisiini
  • kapsaisiinichemical compound
French capsaïcine, capsaïsine
  • capsaïcinechemical compound
  • capsaïsinechemical compound
German Capsaicin
  • Capsaicinchemical compound
Greek καψαϊκίνη
  • καψαϊκίνη (kapsaïkíni)chemical compound
Hungarian kapszaicin
  • kapszaicinchemical compound
Icelandic kapsaísín, capsæsín
  • kapsaísínchemical compound
  • capsæsínchemical compound
Italian capsaicina
  • capsaicinachemical compound
Japanese カプサイシン
  • カプサイシン (kapusaishin)chemical compound
Korean 캡사이신
  • 캡사이신 (kaepsaisin)chemical compound
Polish kapsaicyna
  • kapsaicynachemical compound
Portuguese capsaicina
  • capsaicinachemical compound
Romanian capsaicină
  • capsaicinăchemical compound
Russian капсаици́н
  • капсаици́н (kapsaicín)chemical compound
Spanish capsaicina
  • capsaicinachemical compound
Swedish capsaicin
  • capsaicinchemical compound
Thai แคปไซซิน
  • แคปไซซิน (kɛ́p-sai-sin)chemical compound
Turkish kapsaisin
  • kapsaisinchemical compound
Cite this entry
APA

capsaicin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/capsaicin

MLA

“capsaicin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/capsaicin. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “capsaicin,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/capsaicin.

Source: capsaicin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.