I. ˈjin-jər noun
Etymology: Middle English, alteration of Old English gingifer, from Medieval Latin gingiber, alteration of Latin zingiber, from Greek zingiberi, of Indo-Aryan origin; akin to Pali siṅgivēra ginger
Date: before 12th century
1.
a.
(1) : a thickened pungent aromatic rhizome that is used as a spice and sometimes medicinally
(2) : the spice usually prepared by drying and grinding ginger
b. : any of a genus ( Zingiber of the family Zingiberaceae, the ginger family) of herbs with pungent aromatic rhizomes ; especially : a widely cultivated tropical herb ( Z. officinale ) that supplies most commercial ginger — compare wild ginger
2. : pep
the ginger to…work hard — Willa Cather
3. : a light reddish or reddish-brown color
ginger hair
• gin·gery ˈjinj-rē, ˈjin-jə- adjective
II. transitive verb
( gin·gered ; gin·ger·ing ˈjinj-riŋ, ˈjin-jə-)
Date: 1849
: to make lively : pep up
ginger up the tourist trade — New York Times