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perishable

UK/ˈpɛ.ɹɪ.ʃə.bəl/US/ˈpɛ.ɹɪ.ʃə.bəl/
adjectiveB2+Rare in speech; mostly a word you read · #12,348 of 15,258neutral

Perishable means liable to go bad if not kept cool or moved fast. Perishable goods, highly perishable, perishables in the chilled section.

In shipping it is a category with its own rules, temperatures and paperwork, and the cold chain is the unbroken run of refrigeration from farm to shelf. Breaking it once ruins the food even if it is chilled again afterwards.

Mark Rigler from Poole, England · CC BY 2.0

Definitions of perishable

  1. 1adjectiveperishableLiable to go bad if not kept cool or moved fast.B2+

    “Perishable foods like milk and fish must be kept in the fridge.”

perishable is a quality.

Where it comes from

From perish, from Old French perir, from Latin perire, to pass away — per plus ire, to go.

  1. Middle English

    *persishable

  2. English, today

    perishable

From Middle English persishable, perysabyl, equivalent to perish + -able. Compare Old French perissable (and modern French périssable).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Shipping & Logistics

Practise this word

perishable in the wild

  • In some regions, an advisory best before, mandatory use by or freshness date is required on packaged perishable foods.

    Shelf life

  • Apart from adding to flavor and texture, a biga also helps to preserve bread by making it less perishable.

    Biga (bread baking)

  • The objective of a cold chain is to preserve the integrity and quality of goods such as pharmaceutical products or perishable goods from production to consumption.

    Cold chain

  • Unlike other goods or merchandise, cold chain goods are perishable and always en-route towards end use or destination.

    Cold chain

  • Shelf-stable food (also called non-perishable food, non-perishable(s), or ambient food) is food of a type that can be safely stored at room temperature in a sealed container.

    Shelf-stable food

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.

Related words

  • perish