ferment
part of speech
verb (ferment, ferments, fermented, fermenting); noun (ferment, uncountable)
meaning for a pupil
1) (science) To ferment means to change chemically because of yeast or bacteria, which break down sugar and make gas, acid or alcohol. tree →
2) To ferment trouble means to cause it or stir it up (more often «foment»). tree →
3) (noun, formal) A ferment is a state of excitement, unrest or trouble in a group of people. tree →
sense in the lessons
In science and cooking lessons pupils learn that bread rises because yeast ferments sugar and makes carbon dioxide; yoghurt, cheese, sauerkraut, kimchi and soy sauce are made by fermentation. In history and formal writing, «in a ferment» means people are restless. Phrases: «leave to ferment», «in a state of ferment».
examples
- Yeast makes the dough ferment and rise. tree →
- Milk ferments into yoghurt. tree →
- Cabbage is fermented to make sauerkraut. tree →
- The grape juice fermented in big barrels. tree →
- We watched a balloon fill with gas from fermenting sugar water. tree →
- The city was in a ferment after the news. tree →
- Kimchi is fermented cabbage from Korea. tree →
note
Regular verb: fermented. Noun: fermentation. Stress: verb «fer-MENT», noun «FER-ment». Trap: «ferment» is often confused with «foment» (to stir up trouble); «foment» is the correct word for that sense. Fermentation needs living microbes; it is not the same as rotting, though both use microbes.
In the corpora
- Only after fermenting, drying and roasting do they start to smell of chocolate.
- Fresh cocoa beans taste bitter and smell of chocolate only after fermenting, drying and roasting.
- Fresh cocoa beans taste bitter and nothing like chocolate; the chocolate taste comes from fermenting and roasting.
- For my heart was in a ferment, and I was pricked in my reins.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «ferment» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.