different between butterscotch vs caramel

English

Etymology

Butter + scotch, with the second element deriving not from scotch whiskey or Scotland, but from Middle English scocchen (“to score, nick, cut”), in reference to how the candy is boiled and hardened and then usually scored to make breaking it apart easier. The word is usually said to have originally been a trademark of Parkinson's, who is claimed to have invented it.

Pronunciation

• (General American) IPA^(key): /?b?t??sk?t?/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?b?t??sk?t?/
• Hyphenation: but?ter?scotch

Noun

butterscotch (usually uncountable, plural butterscotches)

1. A hard candy made from butter, brown sugar, syrup and vanilla.
2. A sauce or syrup made of similar ingredients.
3. A light brown colour, like that of butterscotch candy.

Translations

Adjective

butterscotch (not comparable)

1. Of a light brown colour, like that of butterscotch candy.
2. Having the flavour of butterscotch.

Translations

See also

• Appendix:Colors

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French caramel, from Spanish caramelo, from Portuguese caramelo, from Late Latin calamellus, diminutive of calamus (“reed”) (and therefore a doublet of chalumeau and shawm), or alternatively from Medieval Latin cannamellis, which is either a compound of canna + mellis.

Pronunciation

• (UK, General Australian, General New Zealand) and (US, Mary–marry–merry distinction) IPA^(key): /?kæ?.?.m?l/, /?kæ?.?.m?l/, or IPA^(key): /?kæ.??.m?l/, /?kæ.??.m?l/
• (US, Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /?k??.?.m?l/, /?k??.?.m?l/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?k??.m?l/, /?k??.?.m?l/

Noun

caramel (countable and uncountable, plural caramels)

1. (uncountable) A smooth, chewy, sticky confection made by heating sugar and other ingredients until the sugars polymerize and become sticky.
2. (countable) A (sometimes hardened) piece of this confection.
3. (color) A yellow-brown color, like that of caramel.

Usage notes

Both the two syllable and the three syllable pronunciations are very common in all regions of the United States. The three-syllable pronunciation is more common than the two-syllable one in the South (excluding western Texas), northern New Jersey, eastern New York, and New England, while the two-syllable one is more common in other regions.

Derived terms

• caramel fuel
• caramelise, caramelize

Translations

See also

• fudge, toffee

Adjective

caramel (not comparable)

1. Of a yellow-brown color.
   • 2001, Nicole Sconiers, California Schemin': The Black Woman's Guide to Surviving in LA

     Every time I saw this caramel cutie, she was working on a new proposal or business plan or flyer to promote herself and her event coordinating business.

Verb

caramel (third-person singular simple present caramels, present participle caramelling or carameling, simple past and past participle caramelled or carameled)

1. (transitive, cooking, dated) To caramelize.
   • 1900, M. M. Mallock, The Economics of Modern Cookery: Or, A Younger Son's Cookery Book

     To turn out, place the dish over the mould, and invert both together, when, if the caramelling has been complete, the pudding should slip out without any difficulty at all.

Further reading

• caramel on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

References

Anagrams

• Maracle, cameral, ceramal, maceral, reclama

Catalan

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish caramelo.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /k?.???m?l/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /ka.?a?m?l/

Noun

caramel m (plural caramels)

1. caramel (sticky confection made by heating sugar)
2. candy, sweet

Further reading

• “caramel” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Spanish caramelo, from Portuguese caramelo, probably from Late Latin calamellus, and therefore doublet of the inherited chalumeau.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ka.?a.m?l/

Noun

caramel m (plural caramels)

1. caramel, fudge

Derived terms

• caraméliser

Descendants

Further reading

• “caramel” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Anagrams

• calmera, clamera, réclama

Romanian

Etymology

From French caramel.

Noun

caramel n (plural carameluri)

1. caramel

Declension