1
: a condiment or relish for food
especially
: a fluid dressing or topping
2
: something that adds zest or piquancy
3
: stewed fruit eaten with other food or as a dessert
4
: pert or impudent language or actions
5
slang
: liquor
—used with the
sauced; saucing
1
a
: to dress with relish or seasoning
b
: to cover or serve with a sauce
2
a
archaic
: to modify the harsh or unpleasant characteristics of
b
: to give zest or piquancy to
3
: to be rude or impudent to
Synonyms
Examples of sauce in a Sentence
Noun
She tried several sauces before she found one she liked.
chicken in a cream sauce
Cover the strawberries with the chocolate sauce.
This pizza needs more sauce.
I've had enough of your sauce!
Recent Examples on the Web
Hannah Whitaker, The New Yorker, 22 Apr. 2024
Cook just until sauce is thickened, about 2 minutes.
—Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024
Michelin applauds the Dungeness crab curry and salmon over king trumpet noodles in a tamarind and pineapple sauce.
—Connie Ogle, Miami Herald, 19 Apr. 2024
For the challenge, the chefs had to adapt a sauce recipe from Wisconsin cooking pioneer Carson Gulley’s recipe to incorporate into their farmers' market ingredients.
—Buddha Lo, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
Most of Noisette’s sauces, like Bordelaise and matelote, take three to four days to make.
—Lily O'Neill, The Denver Post, 18 Apr. 2024
And Michelle’s coconut bread pudding stood out as a classic supper club dessert — even if most of the judges would’ve liked a bit more of its pineapple cream sauce.
—Rachel Bernhard, Journal Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2024
The Pasta Bolognese had the proper ratio of wide noodles to flavorful, tomato-heavy sauce.
—PCMAG, 16 Apr. 2024
During the first few days of the April cruise, other fresh fish dishes included sea bass with lemon butter sauce and tapenade at brasserie Rudi’s Sel de Mer and trout with a bread crumb and cashew crust served in a curry sauce with at Asian restaurant Tamarind.
—Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
Kim Severson, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
Prices: Ravioli $15 per box of 50, meatballs $10 for 10, sauce $10 per quart, grated cheese $8 per container.
—Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 20 Mar. 2024
The special features a 20-ounce dry-aged bone-in NY strip, full lobster, sauce Americaine, pomme puree, and glazed carrots with pearl onions.
—Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 9 Feb. 2024
Add broccoli and cheese to sauce: Add cheese, and stir until melted and smooth.
—Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 26 Dec. 2023
Adjust consistency with extra water as needed until sauce smoothly coats noodles.
—Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
Then return the wings, sauced, to the air fryer, so the sauce can adhere to the wings and caramelize slightly—if left on the entire cook time, the sauce would likely burn.
—Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 26 Jan. 2024
Or, make your go-to sauce plus an exciting experiment.
—Aleksandra Crapanzano / Photographs By F. Martin Ramin/the Wall Street Journal, Food Styling By Kim Ramin , WSJ, 10 Nov. 2023
Get a jump on Thanksgiving menu prep or sauce up any meal with this easy turkey gravy from scratch—no drippings required.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Oct. 2023
Noun
Marcella Hazan’s famous three-ingredient tomato sauce is a Genius Recipe, as is the radicchio salad with Manchego vinaigrette, from a Spanish restaurant in Portland, Oregon, called Toro Bravo (now closed), and the Smitten Kitchen mushroom bourguignonne.
—Hannah Whitaker, The New Yorker, 22 Apr. 2024
Cook just until sauce is thickened, about 2 minutes.
—Bethany Thayer, Detroit Free Press, 20 Apr. 2024
Michelin applauds the Dungeness crab curry and salmon over king trumpet noodles in a tamarind and pineapple sauce.
—Connie Ogle, Miami Herald, 19 Apr. 2024
For the challenge, the chefs had to adapt a sauce recipe from Wisconsin cooking pioneer Carson Gulley’s recipe to incorporate into their farmers' market ingredients.
—Buddha Lo, Peoplemag, 18 Apr. 2024
Most of Noisette’s sauces, like Bordelaise and matelote, take three to four days to make.
—Lily O'Neill, The Denver Post, 18 Apr. 2024
And Michelle’s coconut bread pudding stood out as a classic supper club dessert — even if most of the judges would’ve liked a bit more of its pineapple cream sauce.
—Rachel Bernhard, Journal Sentinel, 17 Apr. 2024
The Pasta Bolognese had the proper ratio of wide noodles to flavorful, tomato-heavy sauce.
—PCMAG, 16 Apr. 2024
During the first few days of the April cruise, other fresh fish dishes included sea bass with lemon butter sauce and tapenade at brasserie Rudi’s Sel de Mer and trout with a bread crumb and cashew crust served in a curry sauce with at Asian restaurant Tamarind.
—Nathan Diller, USA TODAY, 16 Apr. 2024
Verb
Chefs looking to create dishes for a new plant-forward world discovered that coneheads were easy to braise or roast, and looked gorgeous when quartered and sauced on a plate.
—Kim Severson, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2024
Prices: Ravioli $15 per box of 50, meatballs $10 for 10, sauce $10 per quart, grated cheese $8 per container.
—Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 20 Mar. 2024
The special features a 20-ounce dry-aged bone-in NY strip, full lobster, sauce Americaine, pomme puree, and glazed carrots with pearl onions.
—Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 9 Feb. 2024
Add broccoli and cheese to sauce: Add cheese, and stir until melted and smooth.
—Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 26 Dec. 2023
Adjust consistency with extra water as needed until sauce smoothly coats noodles.
—Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
Then return the wings, sauced, to the air fryer, so the sauce can adhere to the wings and caramelize slightly—if left on the entire cook time, the sauce would likely burn.
—Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 26 Jan. 2024
Or, make your go-to sauce plus an exciting experiment.
—Aleksandra Crapanzano / Photographs By F. Martin Ramin/the Wall Street Journal, Food Styling By Kim Ramin , WSJ, 10 Nov. 2023
Get a jump on Thanksgiving menu prep or sauce up any meal with this easy turkey gravy from scratch—no drippings required.
—Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sauce.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near sauce
Cite this Entry
“Sauce.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sauce. Accessed 25 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sauce
1 of 2 noun1
: a thick liquid that is eaten with or on food to add flavor
a tangy pasta sauce
ice cream with chocolate sauce
2
: boiled or canned fruit
cranberry sauce
3
: rude or impolite language or actions
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