Madras

How to spell madras

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce madras

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does madras mean?

1. nounA medium-hot South Indian style of curry, typically rich with chilli, tomato and spices.
2. nounA light cotton cloth, usually woven in bright checks or stripes, used for shirts and summer clothing.

Madras in a sentence

• He ordered a lamb madras and a side of rice.

• He wore a short-sleeved shirt of checked madras in the heat.

• The menu listed a chicken madras as one of the hotter choices.

• The tailor recommended madras for its breathable, lightweight weave.

Where does madras come from?

Language of origin: Other

This word is simply the name of the South Indian city of Madras, the former name of present-day Chennai, pressed into service as a common noun. The city name itself is of disputed origin: some trace it to Madraspatnam, the fishing settlement on which the colonial port grew, while others connect it to a local family name or to religious schools (madrasa) in the area, so the deeper root is genuinely uncertain. Under British rule Madras became a major trading centre, and two of its exports lent their name to everyday English: a lightweight checked or striped cotton cloth woven there, and the brisk, medium-hot curry style associated with the region. The fabric sense appears in English from the early 1800s and the food sense became familiar much later through British curry houses. Because the source is a proper noun, the spelling preserves the single 's' and the unstressed first vowel that trip up writers.

How the word is built

• madras (place name, after the Indian city of Madras, now Chennai)