Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - chili

 also chile or chilli  noun  (plural ~es; also chiles or ~s or chillies)  Etymology: Spanish chile, from Nahuatl chilli  Date: 1604  1.  a. a hot pepper of any of a group of cultivars (Capsicum annuum annuum group longum) noted for their pungency — called also ~ pepper  b. (usually chilli) plural chillies also chillis chiefly British a pepper whether hot or sweet  2.  a. a thick sauce of meat and ~es  b. ~ con carne