/ ˈdʒɪndʒəbred; NAmE -dʒərb-/ noun
[ U ] a sweet cake or soft biscuit / cookie flavoured with ginger :
a gingerbread man (= a gingerbread biscuit / cookie in the shape of a person)
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IDIOMS
see gilt
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English (originally denoting preserved ginger), from Old French gingembrat , from medieval Latin gingibratum , from gingiber , from Greek zingiberis . The change in the ending in the 15th cent. was due to association with bread .