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Merriam Webster explains vanilla (when used as an adjective) as:

lacking distinction : plain, ordinary, conventional

It's not obvious why vanilla has such a meaning, and why plain is listed as its synonym. As you can find in the grocery store, vanilla yogurt and plain yogurt are two different products:

vanilla plain

So I'm wondering what's the exact difference between these two words and how to use vanilla correctly so that the salesperson doesn't hand you the wrong yogurt.

Cyker
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    In addition to the answers, you can see that there is a vanilla flower on the left one (https://www.google.fr/search?q=vanilla+flower). The barn on the right side does not make much sense in that context, though (they should have left the spot empty if this is the place they put the flavour picture in) – WoJ Aug 16 '18 at 08:29
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    @WoJ - Because yogurt is derived from milk, I think the barn is supposed to be reminiscent of cows. – J.R. Aug 16 '18 at 08:51
  • @J.R.: thanks, this is something I considered as well - but the yoghurt on the left is derived from milk as well :) Anyway, the second part of my comment was just a thought I had when typing the first one. – WoJ Aug 16 '18 at 10:56
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    @WoJ - Well, the strawberry yogurt has a strawberry, the cherry yogurt gets a cherry, and the coffee yogurt shows some coffee beans. I guess the plain yogurt had to have something, and I can understand how the company wouldn't want to put a barn on every label. – J.R. Aug 16 '18 at 11:24

5 Answers5

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Well, the vanilla you see on yogurt and ice cream cups refers to the flavor. The definition you are asking about talks about something else. It comes from the basic meaning of "vanilla", namely an ordinary flavor of ice cream or other dairy/bakery products, but has evolved to mean the default option that comes with no extra features. So for example if someone says

It's so hard to pick a laptop. I think I am going to go with the vanilla version.

They are basically saying: "I will buy the one with no special features or outstanding characteristics." This usage has nothing with taste. It comes from the notion that vanilla is the most common flavor among all the flavors.

Eddie Kal
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    Thank you for pointing out the etymology. I think it might be true that vanilla flavor is the default option for ice creams. I don't seem to have found a plain-flavored ice cream. Probably who coined such usage is a fan of ice creams not yogurts. – Cyker Aug 15 '18 at 23:28
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    @Cyker The ice cream equivalent of "plain" is "sweet cream". It generally has no flavoring other than the dairy products and sugar/sweetening agents. This is a flavor I've seen in smaller ice cream shops but not necessarily in large brands found in stores. – Catija Aug 15 '18 at 23:41
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    @Catija In Germany, you sometimes see "milk" ice cream, which is basically vanilla ice cream without flavour (since most ice creams that are not fruit-based are milk-based). – Ian Aug 16 '18 at 06:22
  • It should be noted that for the "plain" meaning of vanilla, you'll notice that it is often said or written as "plain vanilla". – pboss3010 Aug 16 '18 at 11:35
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    @Ian in English, "ice cream" generally requires milk products (or milk alternatives like soy milk, coconut milk, etc). Fruit-based frozen desserts are more commonly referred to as sorbet. So, strawberry ice cream is milk-based while strawberry sorbet has no dairy. – Catija Aug 16 '18 at 11:59
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    I remember as a kid thinking that if you froze milk it would taste like vanilla. But this is really ironic, though. Real vanilla is actually an exotic seasoning that comes from the seeds of an orchid. Artificial vanilla is pretty dull but actual vanilla has a verycomplex flavor. I can only imagine that it's popularity or the introduction of vanillin that led to the idea of vanilla being 'plain'. – JimmyJames Aug 16 '18 at 14:40
  • @Catija Same in German in fact (although the distinction isn’t strict, but nor is it in English). – Konrad Rudolph Aug 16 '18 at 16:06
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    Also worth noting that "vanilla" yogurt, like all flavoured yogurts, is nearly always sweetened with added sugar in addition to being flavoured with vanilla bean (real or artificial). "Plain" yogurt is neither flavoured nor sweetened. – J... Aug 16 '18 at 16:28
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    I suspect that part of the reason vanilla came to be equated to plain or default is that the ice cream makers added so little vanilla that most people can't actually taste it. Perhaps here the yogurt maker is actually adding enough to taste, as with "French Vanilla" ice cream. – jamesqf Aug 16 '18 at 17:03
  • Interestingly, I've never heard anyone using "vanilla" by itself to mean plain. It's always been "plain vanilla". – Michael J. Aug 16 '18 at 19:50
  • @KonradRudolph it actually can be fairly strict. I remember a scandal when a brand had less percentage dairy than the required amount to use the word "ice cream". They had to change it to "frozen dairy dessert". It was a really big deal in the store I worked at. – Aethenosity Aug 17 '18 at 14:19
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    This answer is completely strange. "Vanilla" is a thing, like say "an orange" or "a jet aircraft" or "the ocean". Obviously "vanilla" means it has vanilla in it. (Or of course an artificial vanilla.) Regarding ice-cream, note you can, of course obviously, get PLAIN ice-cream. ie, just the cream, sugar etc. "PLAIN" simply means "NO flavoring". Couldn't be simpler. – Fattie Aug 18 '18 at 07:45
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    "I don't seem to have found a plain-flavored ice cream." That is incredibly bizarre, @Cyker !! You have never had normal, plain, ice-cream?!!? (Sometimes called "milk" ice-cream, or "natural" or "unflavored" or just "plain" ice-cream.) It's by far the best. – Fattie Aug 18 '18 at 07:53
  • Whenever you go somewhere to try some famous ice cream, of course - obviously - what you degust on is the "plain" one. Why would you try it with flavorings?? It would be as if you go to compare some famous Champagnes, but you add orange juice to make a mimosa. If (to me, incredibly) you have never had actual normal ice cream (ie, without fruits or flavorings added), you are in for a treat!!!! Enjoy – Fattie Aug 18 '18 at 07:57
  • Ridiculous! If you want to compare the skill of an ice cream maker, you must try the pistachio! – mattdm Aug 19 '18 at 13:20
  • Hi @mattdm , that's funny, but I suggest on the English learner's site, humour often just adds confusion to otherwise confusing QAs. – Fattie Aug 19 '18 at 15:20
  • @Fattie: I've never seen plain/unflavored ice cream, either, and I've lived in the U.S. almost my whole life. If you think that's "incredibly bizarre", then there are parts of the English-speaking world that you're apparently unfamiliar with. – ruakh Aug 20 '18 at 03:46
  • @Fattie - In the UK the 'basic' kind of ice cream is vanilla (the cheaper kinds use artificial flavouring). – Kate Bunting Oct 23 '21 at 07:59
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Vanilla can be a synonym for plain, but that's not what's happening here.

With yogourt, vanilla is referring to the noun, as described by Merriam-Webster:

1 b : a commercially important extract of the vanilla bean that is used especially as a flavoring

Jason Bassford
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    Well someone changed the title. I think I know what's the difference in taste because I bought both. But I'm still curious why vanilla is made a synonym for plain even though they taste differently, like, where does this sort of thing originate from? – Cyker Aug 15 '18 at 23:00
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    @Cyker When it comes to yogourt specifically, vanilla is not a synonym for plain. Vanilla refers to the vanilla bean, a specific thing. This is similar to having orange-flavoured food even though "orange" is also a colour. Different words have different meanings and contexts. – Jason Bassford Aug 15 '18 at 23:22
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    I'd go a little further: vanilla is hardly ever a synonym for plain in the context of food. It's the default for ice cream, and plain biscuits often have a little vanilla but aren't strongly flavoured. Vanilla=plain is usually metaphorical – Chris H Aug 16 '18 at 14:31
  • Actually if you look further down that page on the Merrian Webster site the first definition of vanilla when used as an adjective is "flavored with vanilla". – Eric Nolan Aug 17 '18 at 17:02
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    "I'm still curious why vanilla is made a synonym for plain" IT IS NOT. It's an idiom meaning "the most common variety". – Fattie Aug 18 '18 at 07:58
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The confusion seems to arise from the fact that in your quote from Merriam Webster, you provided only the second of two adjectival definitions. The whole definition is:

vanilla adjective

Definition of vanilla

1 : flavored with vanilla

2 : lacking distinction : plain, ordinary, conventional

In the case of Yogurt, the first is in use. And in that context "plain" simply means "unflavored" (although anyone who has tasted plain yogurt will tell you, after they stop grimacing and smacking their lips, that it certainly does have a flavor!)

Outside of Yogurt, or food flavoring in general (and maybe the sub-field of botany dealing with Mexican orchids) "vanilla" is just a synonym for plain; i.e. lacking distinction, ordinary, or, to throw in another example of this kind of thing, "common or garden".

The reason "vanilla" took on that second meaning of plain/ordinary etc, is that in foods such as ice cream, yogurt, and custard, vanilla was by far the most commonly used flavoring, so much so that it came to be regarded as...well, plain, ordinary, and so on.

Other examples of this kind of thing are the aforementioned "common or garden", and "box, standard" (sometimes mispronounced as "bog standard")

Eddie Kal
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tkp
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    +1 I like your mention of common or garden and box, standard. Though I think it is worth noting that both terms are Britishisms. Also, I don't think bog standard is a mispronunciation, as it is seen as the standard/more common term of the two. See the BBC and The Phrase Finder – Eddie Kal Aug 16 '18 at 15:21
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    In that case, and thinking back to my Scottish schooldays, the phrase really should not be being used to mean ordinary. As places you only visited if you really had to go, there was absolutely nothing plain and ordinary about the bogs in my school. :-) – tkp Aug 16 '18 at 20:18
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    Please note that to someone who doesn't know what the word "vanilla" means, the first sentence on the Merriam Webster site doesn't really look like a definition! – Mr Lister Aug 17 '18 at 19:38
  • @MrLister, Ha! Didn't even notice that. But you're right. It's perfectly possible for someone to come away thinking that vanilla yogurt is flavored with "any of a genus (Vanilla) of tropical American climbing epiphytic orchids". I can't imagine that tastes very pleasant. – tkp Aug 17 '18 at 22:39
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In my experience, vanilla in that sense is not used for food stuff. As you correctly notice, that would lead to confusion.

In other areas, where no confusion with the actual taste of vanilla is likely, it often means unembellished, without any added stuff.

So a vanilla operating system on your phone means that there are (almost) no pre-installed apps from your provider or other parties.
A vanilla car would be a basic version without any extra options.

oerkelens
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  • Does this mean it's safe to substitute vanilla for plain as long as there isn't a flavor thing? I still don't understand why vanilla would mean unembellished since embellishment basically means adding something. If you taste both yogurts you know the vanilla edition has something added so it's not really plain. – Cyker Aug 15 '18 at 23:06
  • With yoghurt, you're right. The addition of vanilla to that is quite a new embellishment ;) I think Eddie Kal's suggestion about ice cream is a good one. What is the most plain ice cream most people know? Indeed, vanilla. As for substituting vanilla for plain, be aware that it is mostly used in certain fields. I see it a lot in IT-related subjects, for instance, but in some other area's it may not be that common. – oerkelens Aug 15 '18 at 23:09
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    It's just a matter of history--nobody sells "plain" ice cream. The closest you can get is vanilla-flavored, which is a mild, inoffensive flavor to most people. And ice creams of other flavors often add vanilla as well. It's just become part of the standard, common way ice cream is made, so in that context "vanilla" means "nothing added", and has come to mean that metaphorically elsewhere. But in foods, I would always assume "vanilla" means "vanilla flavoring added"--like vanilla coke, vanilla youghurt. – Lee Daniel Crocker Aug 16 '18 at 00:11
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    @LeeDanielCrocker Lots of small ice cream companies sell unflavored ice cream... it's just called "sweet cream". – Catija Aug 16 '18 at 13:36
  • @Cyker It's safe to substitute vanilla for plain in cooking (knowing that you will get a vanilla flavor). If you're using it to treat a yeast infection or something like that then you want plain unsweetened and vanilla flavor yogurt is usually also sweetened--in that case it's not the vanilla flavor, but the sweetener, that is the problem and you would want to check the label to make sure of the exact ingredients. – user3067860 Aug 16 '18 at 13:52
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    @LeeDanielCrocker I think that varies - in Poland you have both "cream-flavored" and "vanilla-flavored" ice cream. You can even get cream-vanilla ice cream with the two flavors clearly separated. – Maciej Stachowski Aug 16 '18 at 14:35
  • Interesting. Never seen that in the US. – Lee Daniel Crocker Aug 16 '18 at 17:15
  • Errant DV. @me if you edit. – Mazura Aug 16 '18 at 21:47
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    @Cyker: I would avoid substituting "vanilla" for "plain" anywhere. Doing so will make you come across ignorant and having poor taste to people who actually know what vanilla is, and that it's a very complex and very expensive flavor. As a non-native speaker it's useful to know people will sometimes use it to mean plain, but I wouldn't recommend doing that yourself. – R.. GitHub STOP HELPING ICE Aug 16 '18 at 23:36
  • @LeeDanielCrocker sweet cream is all over the US, but it seems especially prevelant in the pacific northwest and northern midwest in my experience. In other places I've only seen it in actual ice cream shops – Aethenosity Aug 17 '18 at 14:40
  • Very unpleasant confusion, too: Adding vanilla flavoured yoghurt to a savory dish that calls for plain yoghurt is likely to profoundly ruin it! – rackandboneman Aug 17 '18 at 15:50
  • "It's just a matter of history--nobody sells "plain" ice cream" ..... where do you folks live? I have rarely had ice cream other than plain (or "milk") ice cream. This is one of the strangest QA on the site. It would be as if many people said "Oh, I've only ever drunk Bordeaux with orange or lemon juice squeezed in it." Or "Oh, I've never had chocolate alone, only with nuts or fruits in it." It's totally oddball, guys. – Fattie Aug 19 '18 at 15:24
  • quite , @rackandboneman. So, raita made with "yoplait" comic commercial product rather than actual yoghourt. – Fattie Aug 19 '18 at 15:25
  • Yes, vanilla notes in raita or falafel sauce really, really spoil it.... – rackandboneman Aug 19 '18 at 16:58
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To answer the question in the title, vanilla yogurt is sweetened and tastes like vanilla, while plain yogurt is unsweetened and doesn't have added taste.

Stephen S
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    The question in the title was not present in the original version; apparently the question deviated from the author's original intent. – GalacticCowboy Aug 16 '18 at 13:01
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    @GalacticCowboy No, it didn't. This was and is in the question body: "So I'm wondering what's the exact difference between these two words and how to use vanilla correctly so that the salesperson doesn't hand you the wrong yogurt." Now tell me how the title deviates from that. I merely made it more specific. This answer also answers the implied question from the question body. –  Aug 18 '18 at 14:14
  • Simple is best. And this answer is best: If a supermarket associate confused plain and vanilla yogurt, they should be shown the door. [joke] – Lambie Sep 19 '18 at 21:43