wurst

Definition

A German- or Austrian-style sausage.

Etymology

First attested in 1890. Borrowed from German Wurst (“sausage, wurst”), from Middle High German wurst, from Old High German wurst, from Proto-West Germanic *wursti (“something turned or twisted”), from Proto-Indo-European *wert-, *werd- (“to turn”). Akin to Old Saxon worst (“wurst”), Old English weorþan (“to turn, become”). Doublet of wors. Unrelated to worsted (“type of yarn”). More at worth (“to be, become, betide”).

Example Sentences

• "If you pick up a package of liverwurst (German wurst, sausage), you may find that it contains, in addition to liver, nonfat dry milk, salt, corn syrup, flavorings (unspecified), sodium erythrobate, sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, gelatin, and dextrose. The list reads like a list of chemicals for a laboratory experiment! If you wish to avoid “chemicals” in your food, wurst is one of the worst things you can buy."
• "We had a long walk ahead to Stuttgart. We stopped to eat at a little meat market just outside Augsburg. I bought a loaf of bread and chose a couple of packages of wurst. It really was good."
• "Although the supermarket tannoy was bravely broadcasting Rigoletto, its meat counter was thick with wurst and its wine shelves loaded with Liebfraumilch."

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