| vinegar | 1. A sour liquid used as a condiment, or as a preservative, and obtained by the spontaneous (acetous) fermentation, or by the artificial oxidation, of wine, cider, beer, or the like. The characteristic sourness of vinegar is due to acetic acid, of which it contains from three to five per cent. Wine vinegar contains also tartaric acid, citric acid, etc. 2. Hence, anything sour; used also metaphorically. "Here's the challenge: . . . I warrant there's vinegar and pepper in't." (Shak) Aromatic vinegar, strong acetic acid highly flavored with aromatic substances. Mother of vinegar. See 4th Mother. Radical vinegar, acetic acid. Thieves' vinegar. See Thief. <chemistry> Vinegar eel, a fanciful name of an apparatus designed to oxidize alcohol to acetic acid by means of platinum. Vinegar plant. See 4th Mother. <botany> Vinegar tree, the stag-horn sumac (Rhus typhina), whose acid berries have been used to intensify the sourness of vinegar. Wood vinegar. See Wood. Origin: OE. Vinegre, F. Vinaigre; vin wine (L. Vinum) + aigre sour. See Wine, and Eager. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
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| mother of vinegar | In vinegar, the fungus of acetous fermentation appearing as a stringy sediment. Origin: A.S. Modder, mud (05 Mar 2000) |
| wine vinegar | <chemical> Vinegar produced by the oxidation of alcohol in wine by members of the genus Acetobacter. (09 Oct 1997) |
| wood vinegar | Pyracetic acid;impure acetic acid produced by the destructive distillation of pine tar and wood. Synonym: pyroligneous vinegar. (05 Mar 2000) |
| pyroligneous vinegar | Pyracetic acid;impure acetic acid produced by the destructive distillation of pine tar and wood. Synonym: pyroligneous vinegar. (05 Mar 2000) |
| acid-ash diet | A diet consisting mainly of fruits, vegetables, and milk (with minimal amounts of meat, fish, eggs, cheese, and cereals), which, when catabolised, leave an alkaline residue to be excreted in the urine. Synonym: acid-ash diet, basic diet. (05 Mar 2000) |
| alkaline-ash diet | A diet consisting mainly of fruits, vegetables, and milk (with minimal amounts of meat, fish, eggs, cheese, and cereals), which, when catabolised, leave an alkaline residue to be excreted in the urine. Synonym: acid-ash diet, basic diet. (05 Mar 2000) |
| balanced diet | A diet containing the essential nutrients with a reasonable ration of all the major food groups. (05 Mar 2000) |
| basal diet | A diet having a caloric value equal to the basal heat production and sufficient quanties of essential nutrients to meet basic needs, in experiments in nutrition, a diet from which a given constituent (e.g., a vitamin, mineral, or amino acid), the nutritional value of which is to be determined, is omitted for a period and the effects observed; the subject is observed for a second period during which the ingredient being studied is added to the diet. (05 Mar 2000) |
| basic diet | A diet consisting mainly of fruits, vegetables, and milk (with minimal amounts of meat, fish, eggs, cheese, and cereals), which, when catabolised, leave an alkaline residue to be excreted in the urine. Synonym: acid-ash diet, basic diet. (05 Mar 2000) |
| bland diet | A regular diet omitting foods that mechanically or chemically irritate the gastrointestinal tract. (05 Mar 2000) |
| rachitic diet | A diet that will induce rickets in susceptible experimental animals. (05 Mar 2000) |
| macrobiotic diet | A diet claimed to promote longevity, often by promoting an emphasis on natural foods and restrictions on non-cereal foods, as well as liquids. (05 Mar 2000) |
| reducing diet | A diet in which caloric expenditure is greater than caloric intake. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Giordano-Giovannetti diet | A diet designed for patients with renal failure; it provides small amounts of protein, primarily as essential amino acids, along with alpha-keto derivatives of amino acids; breakdown of protein in skeletal muscle is retarded and, because transaminase reactions are reversible, a small proportion of the ammonia released by urea breakdown is used for synthesis of nonessential amino acids. Synonym: Giovannetti diet. (05 Mar 2000) |