spaghetti
Americannoun
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spaghetti,
plural
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spaghetto
singular
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a white, starchy pasta of Italian origin that is made in the form of long strings, boiled, and served with any of a variety of meat, tomato, or other sauces.
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Electricity. an insulating tubing of small diameter into which bare wire can be slipped.
noun
Usage
See zucchini.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of spaghetti
1885–90; < Italian, plural of spaghetto, diminutive of spago thin rope < Late Latin spacus twine, probably < Greek sphákos long-threaded lichen
Compare meaning
How does spaghetti compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Spaghetti is long, thin pasta. Spaghetti with meatballs in marinara sauce is an Italian restaurant classic. Spaghetti is a popular Italian pasta, often served with a tomato sauce sometimes called spaghetti sauce. The Italian word spago means string, and spaghetti is the plural of spago — a description of what spaghetti looks like. Spaghetti straps are very thin shoulder straps found on dresses and summery tops. In the late 1960s, "spaghetti westerns" were movies about the Wild West, filmed in Italy and directed by Italians.
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.
Ferrero started working with Alcaraz when he was 15, turning his fellow Spaniard from a "piece of spaghetti" into a seven-time Grand Slam champion.
From BBC ● Nov. 2, 2026
Maybe all of that messy human friction had a point beyond just, say, getting a spaghetti sauce recipe.
From Slate ● Oct. 2, 2026
I love a party, but lately the trick has been to spend time with loved ones and feed them well with easy recipes like chicken piccata, flan, spaghetti al limone and this caramelized-corn salad.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026
The theatrical marching orders here seem to involve throwing spaghetti against the wall and laughing uproariously as it slides to the floor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
She slurps spaghetti one noodle at a time and tears garlic bread into a million tiny pieces.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
