“Pea soup” is a thick, green fog so dense you can barely see through it. People also use the phrase for any very thick, greenish liquid or soup made from peas.
You’ll hear drivers say, “The road disappeared in pea soup,” or pilots warn, “Visibility is down to pea soup.” At home, someone might text, “I’m making pea soup for dinner,” meaning the actual dish. Either way, it signals something heavy, green, and hard to see through.
Meaning & Usage Examples
- Weather: “We had to pull over—pea soup on the highway.”
- Food: “Grandma’s pea soup is smoky with ham.”
- Color: “He painted the wall pea soup green.”
Context / Common Use
The weather sense is common in the US and UK. The food sense is everyday kitchen talk. The color term shows up in decorating and fashion tips.
Is “pea soup” always about food?
No. Most often it describes a thick fog, but it can also mean the actual soup or a greenish color.
Where did the fog meaning come from?
It started in London, where coal smoke mixed with fog turned the air greenish-yellow—like pea soup.
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