dessert
Americannoun
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cake, pie, fruit, pudding, ice cream, etc., served as the final course of a meal.
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British. a serving of fresh fruit after the main course of a meal.
noun
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the sweet, usually last course of a meal
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(esp formerly) fruit, dates, nuts, etc, served at the end of a meal
Etymology
Origin of dessert
First recorded in 1780–90; from French, derivative of desservir “to remove what was served, clear the table,” from Old French, from des- dis- 1 + servir “to serve” ( serve )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Fewer people are eating dessert and drinking like they used to.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026
The fruit tastes more like fruit, and not dessert topping.
From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026
As usual, dessert will be accompanied by thousands of golden chocolate statuettes, ensuring everyone can take an Oscar home.
From Barron's • Mar. 11, 2026
For dessert, try the taiyaki, a popular fish-shaped Japanese street food, which is served with a delicious passion fruit cream that I wanted to take to go because I liked it so much.
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2026
The dessert was not carried out till after nine; and at ten footmen were still running to and fro with trays and coffee-cups.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
