a lightweight fabric of silk, cotton, or other fiber, with a finely crinkled or ridged surface.
a usually black band or piece of this material, worn as a token of mourning.
a thin, light, delicate pancake.
a light cotton, silk, or other fabric with a fine ridged or crinkled surface
( as modifier )
a crepe dress
a black armband originally made of this, worn as a sign of mourning
a very thin pancake, often rolled or folded around a filling
short for crepe paper crepe rubber
1790–1800; < French < Latin crispus curled, wrinkled
From French; see origin at crepe
A crepe is a thin, French type of pancake. It's also a word for a type of thin, crinkly paper. Don't confuse your crepes and start chewing on paper. Both types of crepes are thin, though there's only one kind you'd want to eat. The inedible crepe is paper that's very thin and crinkly. Crepe paper is usually colored and is often used in decorations. The other type of crepe is a thin pancake that is filled with many types of food, including meat and fruit. Crepes are even thinner than Swedish pancakes, and they're either sweet or savory. This word shares a linguistic ancestor with English's crisp.
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Here, she shares her minimalist approach to restocking a kitchen from scratch, a smart pantry organization solution—and the crêpe recipe that rescued her from a cooking rut.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 11, 2026
Two miles northwest, Timeless Tea Dessert Café features milk tea, mochi and milled crêpe cakes.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 9, 2023
The ratio of these ingredients is very similar to that of a basic crêpe, but with a totally different execution — and the results couldn't be further apart.
From Salon • Mar. 14, 2023
The restaurant will also offer a daily prix fixe menu that includes a choice of soup or a salad, one savory galette, one dessert crêpe, and a glass of hard cider, soda or juice.
From Fox News • Aug. 26, 2021
The bandages are no longer made of cloth, but of white crêpe paper.
From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque
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.
