Curd

/kɜː(ɹ)d/
C1

Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Listen pronunciation

nounThe part of milk that coagulates when it sours or is treated with enzymes; used to make cottage cheese, dahi, etc.

nounDahi.

Tom spreads lemon curd on his toast.
Fold the egg whites into the lemon curd.
CEFR Practice Quiz
Stir the milk gently until it separates into whey and soft ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Tom spreads lemon ____ on his toast.

From Middle English curd, a metathetic variant of crud, crudde (“coagulated substance”). Doublet of crud.

"Little Miss Muffet, She sat on a tuffet, Eating of curds and whey; There came a little spider, Who sat down beside her, And frighted Miss Muffet away." — 1805, Songs for the Nursery, page 23:
"Broccoli should not be allowed to remain till the compactness of the head is broken, but should always be cut while the 'curd,' as the flowering mass is termed, is entire" — 1865, Fearing Burr, The Field and Garden Vegetables of America:
"This beautiful vegetable [Romanesco broccoli] looks rather like a green cauliflower designed by a mathematician and has lime-green 'spiralled' curds. The curds are nutty and tasty, and romanesco is worth growing just for its good looks. You can use romanesco in the same ways that you would normally use cauliflower but the flavour is sweeter and they look far more impressive. I try to leave them in large pieces when serving them because they're so beautiful." — 2010, Geoff Stebbings, Growing Your Own Fruit and Veg For Dummies, Chichester, W. Sussex: John Wiley & Sons, →ISBN, pages 162–163:
"Does it curd thy blood To say I am thy mother?" — c. 1604–1605 (date written), William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:
CEFR Practice Quiz
Stir the milk gently until it separates into whey and soft ____.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Tom spreads lemon ____ on his toast.

Expand Your Vocabulary with LexUp

Master English words using smart flashcards, play exciting word rounds, and compete with other learners worldwide.

Browse CEFR Words Alphabetically