English

Alternative forms

• sour-stuff, sour stuff

Noun

sourstuff ‎(uncountable)

1. (rare, nonstandard) That which is sour, especially to the taste.
2. (dialectal) Vinegar. (Can we add an example for this sense?)

Etymology 2

From sour +‎ stuff after German Sauerstoff ‎(“oxygen”) and/or Dutch zuurstof ‎(“oxygen”), both loose loan translations of French oxygène. See oxygen for more.

Noun

sourstuff ‎(uncountable)

1. (chemistry, nonstandard, science fiction, rare) Oxygen.
   • 1887, The Electrical journal - Volume 18 - Page 482:

     This is approximately the heat of exploding what the Germans call bang-gas (mixture of sourstuff and waterstuff), the result being liquid.

   • 1898, Analog science fiction/science fact - Volume 109 - Page 134:

     Thus, everyday sourstuff has eight neitherbits with its eight firstbits, [...]

   • 1976, Poul Anderson, Homebrew:

     For an outshow, the gang of water has two waterstuff unclefts bound to one sourstuff uncleft; the gang of rust has two iron and three sourstuff unclefts; [...]