India pale ale

noun

plural India pale ales
: a pale ale made with extra hops : ipa
The hoppy extreme of pale ale is best represented by the enormous bitterness of so-called India pale ale (IPA).— Benjamin Radcliff

Examples of India pale ale in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Its Modern West India pale ale landed gold while Westbound & Down Brewing Co. in Lafayette snagged both silver and bronze for its Westbound Select and Westbound IPA. — Tiney Ricciardi, The Denver Post, 28 Jan. 2025 According to Christine Comeau, executive director of the Canadian Craft Brewers Association, over 200 beers were entered in the India pale ale categories, which, like at the Great American Beer Festival, is the most competitive style of beer. — Don Tse, Forbes, 18 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1837, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of India pale ale was in 1837

Rhymes for India pale ale

See All Rhymes for India pale ale

Browse Nearby Words

India oilstone
India pale ale
India paper
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“India pale ale.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/India%20pale%20ale. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
burrowing owl athene cunicularia tilts its head outside its burrow on marco island florida
Guess the Curious Origins of These Everyday Words Oh, that’s where that comes from…
See All