What does bergamot mean?
Bergamot names two quite different fragrant plants. Most familiarly, it denotes Citrus bergamia, a small, intensely aromatic, and notably sour citrus fruit believed to be a natural hybrid related to the lemon and bitter orange. Grown almost exclusively along the coast of Calabria in southern Italy, its peel yields an essential oil that flavours Earl Grey tea and lends its distinctive bright top note to countless perfumes and colognes, including eau de Cologne itself. The name also applies to Monarda, a showy North American herb of the mint family — often called bee balm or Oswego tea — whose scarlet flowers attract pollinators and whose leaves were brewed by early Americans. In modern English, unqualified use of the word typically signals the citrus: one speaks of bergamot in tea, soap, candles, or fragrance descriptions. The word carries pleasant, refined associations of perfumery and afternoon tea, making it a staple of sensory writing.
A small bitter citrus fruit, Citrus bergamia, cultivated mainly in Calabria, Italy, whose peel yields an essential oil used to flavour Earl Grey tea and to scent perfumes.
"She could always identify Earl Grey by its unmistakable note of bergamot."
Often used as a mass noun when referring to the oil or flavouring rather than the fruit itself.
Any of various aromatic North American herbs of the genus Monarda in the mint family, especially Monarda didyma, known as bee balm or Oswego tea.
"Hummingbirds flock to the tubular red blossoms of the bergamot each summer."
This sense is most common in gardening and historical American contexts; the plant is more widely called bee balm.
The plural is used when referring to multiple individual fruits or plants; when denoting the oil or flavouring, 'bergamot' is treated as an uncountable mass noun.
"The crate arrived filled with knobbly green bergamots fresh from the Calabrian groves."
That unmistakable scent of Earl Grey tea comes from the rind of a bitter little orange grown almost exclusively around the Italian town of Reggio di Calabria.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of bergamot
The word entered English in the early seventeenth century from French 'bergamote', which derives from Italian 'bergamotta'. The ultimate source is uncertain; a commonly cited account traces it to Turkish 'bey armudu', meaning 'the prince's pear' or 'lord's pear', though this etymology is disputed. It has no deep Latin or Greek root cognates, so words sharing its origin are few, chiefly regional Italian terms such as 'bergamasco'.
How bergamot is actually used
When used without qualification, 'bergamot' today usually refers to the citrus fruit, particularly in contexts of tea, perfume, or cosmetics; the herbal sense is more common in gardening and historical American usage. The word functions almost exclusively as a mass noun when denoting the oil or flavouring ('a hint of bergamot') but takes a plural form when referring to individual fruits or plants.
Easily confused with bergamot
A burgomaster is a historical term for a Dutch or German mayor, whereas a bergamot is a citrus fruit or aromatic plant.