ponzu

P3O1N1Z10U1
/ˈpɒnˌzuː/

noun

A sour citrus-based sauce usually made from the juice of the 橙 (daidai), an Asian variety of bitter orange, mixed with soy sauce.

OriginJapanese ポン酢 ← Dutch pons ← Sanskrit पञ्च →
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Meanings

nounponzu (uncountable)
  1. uncountableA sour citrus-based sauce usually made from the juice of the 橙 (daidai), an Asian variety of bitter orange, mixed with soy sauce.

Origin

  1. Sanskritपञ्च“five”
  2. Dutchpons“punch”
  3. Japaneseポン酢
  4. Englishponzu

Borrowed from Japanese ポン酢 (ponzu), in turn from Dutch pons (“punch”, obsolete, superseded by punch), from English punch, ultimately from Sanskrit पञ्च (páñca, “five”). Doublet of cinque, fin (“five currency units”), finnuf, five, pimp (“five”), punch (“beverage”), and sengi (“currency”); related to Pompeii.

More words from Japanese, Dutch, Sanskrit

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Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

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Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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