peruvian

peruvian — adjective

1. connected with Peru, its people, or its culture

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

connected with Peru, its people, or its culture

Example

We ate Peruvian chicken at a small cafe in Lima.

before noun: nationality adjective + food

The museum showed Peruvian masks from villages near the mountains.

Common collocations
  • Peruvian food
  • Peruvian music
  • Peruvian culture
  • Peruvian restaurant
Synonyms
  • from Peru

    A plain phrase with the same basic meaning, often used after a verb.

  • Peru-based

    Only means located in Peru now; it does not always mean culturally Peruvian.

  • South American

    Much broader; it includes Peru and many other countries.

Usage Note

Usually comes before a noun, as in 'Peruvian food' or 'Peruvian music'. After 'be', it works as a normal adjective with no article: 'The chef is Peruvian.'

Common Mistakes

I love peruvian food.
I love Peruvian food.
Words for countries and nationalities take a capital letter in English.

peruvian — noun

Word family

  • Peru
    nounA2

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Peruvian is the best choice when you mean a direct connection with Peru, including its people, culture, food, or art. From Peru gives the same idea in a looser phrase, often after a verb, as in 'The singer is from Peru.' Peru-based only tells you where a person or business is located now, so a Peru-based company may or may not be culturally Peruvian. South American is wider and includes every country on that continent. Latin American is also wider and often points to a shared language and cultural area, not only Peru. Compare: 'We tried Peruvian coffee at lunch' and 'The firm is Peru-based but sells across Asia.'

from PeruPeru-basedSouth AmericanLatin American

Etymology

SpanishEnglish

English formed Peruvian from the country name Peru and the ending -ian, a common ending for words about nationalities and places.