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victual

noun
vict·​ual | \ ˈvi-tᵊl How to pronounce victual (audio) \

Definition of victual

 (Entry 1 of 2)

1 : food usable by people
2 victuals plural : supplies of food : provisions

victual

verb
victualed or victualled; victualing or victualling

Definition of victual (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

: to supply with food

intransitive verb

1 : eat
2 : to lay in provisions
Synonyms Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about victual

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Synonyms for victual

Synonyms: Verb

board, cater, feed, provision

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Did You Know?

Noun

If you're hungry for the story behind victual, get ready to dig into a rich and fulfilling history. The word derives via Middle English and Anglo-French from the Latin noun victus, meaning "nourishment" or "way of living." Victus derives from the verb vivere, which means "to live" and which is the source of a whole smorgasbord of other English words like vital, vivid, and survive. It's also the root of viand, another English word referring to food. There's also vittles, a word that sounds like it might be an alteration of the plural victuals but which actually entered English a century before victual.

Examples of victual in a Sentence

Verb

 the navy was usually equipped, clothed and victualled by the Crown that evening the travelers victualed sumptuously on partridge and venison

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

 And odd Negroes, w[hich] the Governo[r] and Cape Merchant bought for victuals. — National Geographic, "400 years ago, enslaved Africans first arrived in Virginia," 13 Aug. 2019 There's a fine line between WASP victuals and white-trash cuisine. — Ali Wentworth, Town & Country, "The Wisdom of Muffie," 7 Jan. 2013 Or, just buy a bottle and some victuals from the on-site shop, and get in on the picnic action yourself. — Kristin Luna, Condé Nast Traveler, "3 Best Day Trips from Nashville," 4 Mar. 2018 There's a fine line between WASP victuals and white-trash cuisine. — Ali Wentworth, Town & Country, "The Wisdom of Muffie," 7 Jan. 2013

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

 Scholars long thought that the capability to construct and victual a watercraft and then navigate it to a distant coast arrived only with advent of agriculture and animal domestication. — Andrew Lawler, Science | AAAS, "Neandertals, Stone Age people may have voyaged the Mediterranean," 24 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'victual.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of victual

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1558, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

History and Etymology for victual

Noun

Middle English vitaille, victuayle, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin victualia, plural, provisions, victuals, from neuter plural of victualis of nourishment, from Latin victus nourishment, way of living, from vivere to live — more at quick entry 1

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More from Merriam-Webster on victual

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with victual

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for victual

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