Parmesan

noun

Par·​me·​san ˈpär-mə-ˌzän How to pronounce Parmesan (audio)
-ˌzhän,
-zən,
-ˌzan How to pronounce Parmesan (audio)
: a very hard dry sharply flavored cheese that is sold grated or in wedges
sprinkled grated Parmesan over the spaghetti

Examples of Parmesan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The province of Parma is a contender, being a center for production of Parmesan cheese, which is a key component in the dish. Yotam Ottolenghi, New York Times, 13 Mar. 2024 Sprinkle with Parmesan, season with salt and pepper, then transfer each egg to a sandwich. Kate Bradshaw, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024 The pizza features fresh mozzarella, garlic, natural casing pepperoni, marinated tomatoes, red onions, fresh Parmesan and basil. Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 12 Mar. 2024 Parmigiano-Reggiano: A high-quality Parmesan cheese that's sharp, salty, and nutty in flavor. Micah A Leal, Southern Living, 6 Mar. 2024 Dot top of eggplant with mozzarella, and sprinkle with Parmesan. Sabrina Weiss, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024 Its menu offers up shareable feasts like the Korean Wings ($22), Steak Layered Nachos ($27), and Parmesan Truffle Fries ($11), alongside quintessential LA main options like a Smashburger ( $24) and a Fried Chicken Sandwich ($24) with hot honey. Lindsey Bartlett, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 The adult side of the menu does not offer pizza-making, however there are fine dining options, such as tempura fried squash blossoms stuffed with goat cheese or a short rib pasta with a red wine braise, kale, carrots and Parmesan cheese. Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024 Meanwhile, finely grate most of the Parmesan and fold it into the yogurt with lemon juice. Cathy Thomas, Orange County Register, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'Parmesan.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

short for Parmesan cheese; Parmesan "of the city of Parma," borrowed from Middle French parmisan, probably borrowed from a western Upper Italian variant of Tuscan parmigiano, from Parma "Parma" + -igiano, adjective suffix of appurtenance, from Vulgar Latin *-ēs- (going back to Latin -ensis, adjective suffix of place) + Latin -iānus -ian entry 2

Note: The expected Tuscan (and standard Italian) outcome of -igiano would be -iciano; cf. standard Italian bacio "kiss" (from Latin bāsium), usually pronounced [ˈba šo], but Ligurian [ˈba žu], Trentino (northwest Italy) [ˈba žo] (see Gerhard Rohlfs, Grammatica storica della lingua italiana e dei suoi dialetti: Sintassi e formazione delle parole, Turin, 1969, p. 392). The form -igiano with a voiced consonant hence presumably reflects Upper Italian influence. For instances of the same suffix as borrowed into French see courtesan, partisan entry 1. The common American English pronunciation of Parmesan with \zh\ may show dialectal Italian influence.

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Parmesan was in 1538

Dictionary Entries Near Parmesan

Cite this Entry

“Parmesan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Parmesan. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

Parmesan

noun
Par·​me·​san ˈpär-mə-ˌzän How to pronounce Parmesan (audio) -ˌzhän How to pronounce Parmesan (audio)
-zən,
-ˌzan
: a very hard dry sharply flavored cheese that is sold grated or in wedges

More from Merriam-Webster on Parmesan

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