pepperoni

noun

Etymology: Borrowed from Italian peperoni (“bell peppers”), the plural of peperone (“bell pepper”).

1. A spicy salami-style Italian-American sausage made from cured pork and beef seasoned with pepper.

   “He gave the dog a treat — a dried up skinny, turdy looking, pepperoni sausage.”

   “She and her two best friends are choreographing a number for the talent show; she’s applied to California Institute of the Arts; and she flirts unabashedly with a cute pizza server. (The better to land a couple of extra pepperonis on her slice without an upcharge.)”

2. Pizza with only tomato sauce, cheese and pepperoni toppings.

   “Yo, Tony, gimme a slice of pepperoni and a coke.”

   “There's far more than just hot dogs to feast on too. The pizzas—gigantic, floppy, with a hyperreal waxy sheen—are mythic. They arrive exclusively in cheese, pepperoni, or supreme—the holy trinity—and will run you an eminently affordable $1.99 for a ridiculously huge wedge-shaped slice.”