Bel Paese

American

[bel pah-ey-zee, bel pah-e-ze] / ˌbɛl pɑˈeɪ zi, ˌbɛl pɑˈɛ zɛ /

Trademark.

a brand of semisoft, mild Italian cheese.

Bel Paese British

/ ˈbɛl pɑːˈeɪzɪ /

noun

a mild creamy Italian cheese

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Bel Paese

C20: from Italian, literally: beautiful country

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.

This year features not one, but two, songs about the vibrant culture of Il Bel Paese.

From BBC • May 9, 2025

Even if they live on another continent and the food has been in their diet for generations, it makes no difference: the Bel Paese is a touchstone by default.

From Salon • Jan. 4, 2023

This melancholy edifice is what remains of the famous old Galbani offices, the HQ of the firm producing the original Bel Paese cheese at the beginning of the 20th century.

From The Guardian • Nov. 10, 2019

Bits of cheese, a creamy Bel Paese, tastefully arranged.

From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck

The Galvani cheesemakers of Italy who put out both Bel Paese and Taleggio also export Erbo to our shores.

From The Complete Book of Cheese by Brown, Robert Carlton

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023