brewery
BROO-uh-ree
/ˈbruː.ə.ri/
A place where beer or ale is manufactured commercially.
Refers specifically to the production facility where brewing equipment and tanks operate.
The story behind the word. Tracing back to the Proto-Germanic root *breuwan, meaning 'to boil or prepare by bubbling,' the word supplied English with 'brew' in Anglo-Saxon times. The suffix '-ery' was attached in Middle English to mark the physical location where the brewing work occurred.
Word relationships
- brewhouse: Refers specifically to the building or room where mashing and boiling take place.
Commonly confused with
- distillery: A brewery creates fermented malt beverages like beer, while a distillery makes high-proof spirits like whiskey.
Word family
- brew (verb): To make beer by boiling malt and hops.
- brewer (noun): A person who brews beer.
Collocations
- craft brewery
- historic brewery
- brewery tour
- independent brewery
Example sentences
- "The historic brewery produces thousands of barrels of lager each week while offering public tours." Industrial tour
- "They walked down to the old riverside brewery where the smell of warm malt filled the chilly air." Literature
Memory hook
Picture a huge kettle of BROO (brew) bubbling over in an industrial bakERY built for beer. Where malt is brewed into ale.
When not to use
Do not confuse with a general pub or restaurant that only sells beer made elsewhere.
Fun facts
- The oldest continuously operating brewery in the world is Weihenstephan Brewery in Bavaria, Germany, founded in 1040 AD.
Related words
Explore more words
manufacturing, brew, production, spirits, hatchery, commissary
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