ceviche
Americannoun
Usage
What is ceviche? Ceviche is an appetizer dish consisting of raw fish marinated in citrus juice and including ingredients like peppers, onions, and spices. Popular in South America, ceviche generally features chunked fish marinated in lime juice served with sliced white or red onions and chilies. Sea bass, tuna, and shrimp are common choices for the fish, while lemon or bitter orange juice may be used instead of lime. You may even find vegetarian ceviche, with vegetables like mushrooms or artichokes used instead of fish. As long as the base for the dish is served cold and features citrus curing, it could be referred to as a type of ceviche. Ceviche is also spelled seviche. Example: The restaurant offered Sofia and Carlos complementary scallop ceviche because it was their anniversary.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of ceviche
First recorded in 1950–55; from Latin American Spanish (Peru, Ecuador, etc.) cebiche, ceviche, seviche, possibly a derivative of Spanish cebo “fodder, fish pieces used for bait,” from Latin cibus “food”; possibly from Spanish Arabic assukkabāj, from Arabic sikbāj “meat cooked in vinegar,” from unrecorded Middle Persian sikbāg (equivalent to sik “vinegar”+ bāg “food, broth”)
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.
See Examples For:
But what I love most about ceviche isn’t the seafood.
From Salon ● Jun. 9, 2026
The beauty of these ingredients is that they don’t require the long citrus soak associated with traditional ceviche.
From Salon ● Jun. 9, 2026
Fetching ingredients from a fridge decorated with magnetic letters and arts and crafts, Linda preps homemade guacamole to go with ceviche from the market.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2025
Otherwise, service was crisp and clean while we sampled sikil pak, a Yucatecan cream or dip that’s trending in Mexican restaurants this year, and a ceviche with too much tomato.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2025
He nearly spilled his ceviche all over himself.
From "The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora" by Pablo Cartaya
The ceviches are also available in tostada form.
From New York Times ● Oct. 18, 2021
They’ve added tableside guacamole, saucy mixed-seafood ceviches and a family-style dish that will turn heads from across the dining room.
From Washington Post ● Jun. 18, 2019
The mixed seafood ceviches tend to be baroque but pleasurable in their sauciness.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 25, 2019
Soto and his wife, Adina, share kitchen duties on the truck, serving a menu of ceviches, aguachiles, cócteles de mariscos, tacos and quesadillas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2018
On the menu, you’ll find ceviches and causas, smaller dishes to share, including an excellent barbecued roast octopus with black mashed potatoes.
From New York Times ● Apr. 19, 2018
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.
