paella

noun

pa·​el·​la pä-ˈā-yə How to pronounce paella (audio)
-ˈāl-yə,
-ˈe-lə,
-ˈā-lə How to pronounce paella (audio)
: a saffron-flavored dish containing rice, meat, seafood, and vegetables

Examples of paella in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web And there's plenty of year-round outdoor recreation in this city of about 840,000, with more than 20 miles of scenic coastline, many parks, cultural and historic monuments, and restaurants (after all, this is the birthplace of paella). Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 6 Mar. 2024 Bloomberg’s paella index seems to ignore the fact that the dish can be made with meat, too—in fact, the traditional version calls for chicken or rabbit, with seafood a more recent adaptation. Annalisa Merelli, Quartz, 13 June 2023 Today’s adventures come from a Menlo Park couple with a penchant for paella. Jackie Burrell, The Mercury News, 1 Jan. 2024 Fish in clay pot with seafood sauce, lobster with chocolate, lamb-shrimp brochette, paella, sea bass in rock salt, steaks. Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 8 Feb. 2024 The cinnamon-forward sangria is a specialty. Vegetarian options: A few, including two paellas. Benjy Egel, Sacramento Bee, 1 Feb. 2024 Valencia is known for its paella, oranges, the light in the paintings of Joaquin Sorolla, and its 21st century design ambitions. Stephan Rabimov, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2023 With its hundreds of volunteers around the globe, the nonprofit spearheaded by celebrity chef José Andrés pops up to feed those devastated by natural disaster, war or pandemic with gargantuan paella pans, vats of chili, pots of jackfruit stew and hundreds of tacos and ham sandwiches. Stephanie Breijo, Los Angeles Times, 18 Nov. 2023 Both partners spent many years in Europe working in restaurants and catering before moving to the U.S. The bistro serves a mix of American, Mediterranean and European dishes, including Italian pastas, Spanish paella, French beef Bourguignon and American fishermen’s stew and burgers. Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'paella.' 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

Catalan, literally, pot, pan, from Middle French paelle, from Latin patella small pan — more at patella

First Known Use

circa 1892, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of paella was circa 1892

Dictionary Entries Near paella

Cite this Entry

“Paella.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/paella. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

paella

noun
pa·​el·​la pä-ˈel-ə How to pronounce paella (audio) -ˈāl-yə How to pronounce paella (audio)
-ˈā-yə
: a Spanish dish of rice, meat, seafood, vegetables, and spices

More from Merriam-Webster on paella

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