Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A dry colorless plum brandy.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A type of rakija made of distilled, fermented plum juice. It is sometimes referred to as plum brandy.
  • noun A serving of this drink.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a colorless plum brandy popular in the Balkans

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Serbo-Croatian šljivovica, from šljiva, plum; see sleiə- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Serbo-Croatian šljȉvovica / шљи̏вовица, from šljȉva / шљи̏ва ("plum").

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Examples

  • He prefers plum brandy, "slivovitz" - which happens to be the name of the first section of the two-part

    Cleveland Scene 2009

  • ROBERTS: Just as is -- a point of reference, a slivovitz is a very powerful alcoholic drink that's popular in the Balkans.

    CNN Transcript Feb 16, 2007 2007

  • A few shots of the liquor called slivovitz will make you either flushed or ashen-faced.

    The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time William Safire 2004

  • A few shots of the liquor called slivovitz will make you either flushed or ashen-faced.

    The Right Word in the Right Place at the Right Time William Safire 2004

  • Katjka reappeared with a tray of two-litre beer steins and little flasks of tujica, better known as slivovitz, and flopped down between us with a gusty breath.

    The Gates of Noon Rohan, Michael Scott, 1951- 1992

  • The slivovitz was a great hit, tho Auntie Wanda insisted they all have a drink to celebrate Bec arrival.

    Briar Rose Yolen, Jane 1991

  • He turned, still imperious, to the table, placing in the center of its well a small glass beaker, which he filled from a flask until slivovitz reached a marked level circumference.

    The DreydelMaker (exerpt) Daniel Passamaneck 2010

  • "With totally static lips, he could make his puppet drunkenly drawl the words 'a big bottle of Polish slivovitz '- something many would struggle to say for themselves while sober."

    The Daily Goodbye 2010

  • Casey raised her eyebrows suggestively and lifted a bottle of slivovitz, a strong Czech liquor made from plums.

    The Athena Project Brad Thor 2010

  • It seems that Altenberg, who lived out his days in cheap hotels, awoke one morning feeling poorly--probably hung over from a combination of slivovitz and sleeping pills--and decided to spend the day in bed.

    Archive 2009-05-01 Rus Bowden 2009

Comments

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  • A dry and slightly bitter plum brandy

    February 25, 2007

  • “...most households distilled their own slivovitz, a brandy made from plums or other fruit. The drink contained a high concentration of copper since it was prepared and boiled in specially made copper vessels...�?

    —Michael Howell and Peter Ford, The Ghost Disease, and Twelve Other Stories of Detective Work in the Medical Field, (New York: Penguin Books, 1985), 356

    September 11, 2008