fizz

American  

[fiz] / fɪz /

verb (used without object)

1. to make a hissing or sputtering sound; effervesce.

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noun

1. a fizzing sound; effervescence.

2. soda water or other effervescent water.

3. an iced mixed drink made of liquor, lemon juice, sugar, and soda.

   gin fizz.

4. British Informal. champagne.

fizz British  

/ fɪz /

verb

1. to make a hissing or bubbling sound

2. (of a drink) to produce bubbles of carbon dioxide, either through fermentation or aeration

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noun

1. a hissing or bubbling sound

2. the bubbly quality of a drink; effervescence

3. any effervescent drink

Usage

What does fizz mean? Fizz is a bubbliness or bubbly quality, like the kind in a carbonated drink. A much more formal word for this is effervescence. Fizz can also refer to the kind of hissing sound that such bubbliness makes or to the kind of drink that’s known for having fizz, like soda (pop), seltzer, and soda water (which is sometimes called fizzwater). More specifically, the word fizz can refer to an alcoholic mixed drink containing liquor, fruit juice, sugar, and club soda. A classic example is a gin fizz. Fizz is also a British slang term for champagne, which is known for bubbliness (it’s sometimes called bubbly for the same reason). Fizz can also be used as a verb meaning to make a bubbling or hissing noise or to produce bubbles, as in That soda bottle may fizz a bit when you open it. Something that’s bubbly or fizzing can be described with the adjective fizzy. Example: I like how the fizz tickles my nose as I’m drinking.

Other Word Forms

• fizzer noun
• fizziness noun
• fizzy adjective

Etymology

Origin of fizz

First recorded in 1655–65; back formation from fizzle

Explanation

To fizz is to froth or bubble over. If you shake up a soda, it will fizz out of the bottle when you open it. When something fizzes, you hear a hissing sound as the tiny gas bubbles are released. Any carbonated beverage will fizz when it's opened or poured, the way seltzer fizzes in a glass, or beer fizzes and foams in a mug. The word fizz, which has been in use since the 1600s, is imitative — in other words, it sounds just like what it means.

Example Sentences

Glamorously writing under the byline Genêt, she filled her dispatches with more fizz than champagne.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 19, 2026

A class of seven and eight-year-olds fizz with excitement, with no real idea about the comedy timing, over-the-top baddies and "behind you" jokes ahead of them.

From BBC • Dec. 12, 2025

Carpenter closed, as she always does, with “Espresso,” and if you’d assumed that by now this breezy electro-pop bop would inevitably have lost some of its fizz, think again.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 17, 2025

“As they melt, these Candies gently fizz on your tongue,” per TJ’s.

From Salon • Jul. 30, 2025

The hammer fell and sparks danced out of the chamber with a fizz!

From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older