cep

IPA/sep/
KK[sˈɛp]IPA/sep/

cep — noun

1. a brown wild mushroom that people especially value for cooking because it has a

1.nounC2
Definition

a brown wild mushroom that people especially value for cooking because it has a rich flavour

Example

Talia bought dried cep at the market for her pasta sauce.

collocation: dried cep

After the rain, Jabari looked for ceps under the pine trees.

Common collocations
  • dried cep
  • fresh ceps
  • cep soup
  • cep sauce
  • pick ceps
Synonyms
  • mushroom

    a very broad everyday term, so it is much less exact

  • porcini

    the more common Italian loanword for the same edible mushroom

  • boletus

    a scientific or specialist term that can include related mushrooms too

Grammar Patterns

dried cep

fresh ceps

cep soup

pick ceps

Usage Note

Mostly used in recipes, menus, and mushroom-picking talk; many Italian-style menus use porcini instead.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Cep is a precise food word for a valued wild mushroom, especially in British cooking or mushroom-picking contexts. Porcini names the same mushroom, but it is the label many menus and recipe books prefer, especially in Italian food. Mushroom is much broader and does not tell the reader which kind is meant. Boletus sounds scientific and may refer to a wider group rather than this specific edible type. Use cep or porcini when the exact mushroom matters in a dish. Use mushroom when the type is unimportant or unknown. For example, The chef soaked dried cep before dinner is precise, while We found mushrooms in the woods is general.

cep ↗porcini ↗mushroom ↗boletus ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • cep soup
  • cep sauce
  • dried cep

Phrases

  • cook with cep
  • pick ceps
  • slice fresh cep

Etymology

First known use

1865

1865, in the meaning defined above