Synonyms

comfort food

American

[kuhm-fert food] / ˈkʌm fərt ˌfud /

noun

simple, home-style food that brings comforting thoughts of home or childhood.

comfort food British

noun

food that is enjoyable to eat and makes the eater feel better emotionally

"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 comfort food

First recorded in 1955–60

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:

comfort food

The transition comes as Cracker Barrel faces fierce competition from chains like Denny's and IHOP, which have been fighting to take market share among budget-conscious diners seeking classic American comfort food.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

They still lean heavily into comfort food and house wine with one notable exception.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 20, 2026

Natalie Green, a fertility nurse in Manhattan, used to regularly hop a train to Jersey City, N.J., to get her fix of comfort food at Cheesecake Factory, a chain known for big portions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 13, 2026

If I’m in the cooking mood, I love making comfort food like chicken and rice with cabbage and mac and cheese.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 10, 2026

It's a time for comfort food, sure enough.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

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