deli
Americannoun
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delis
plural
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a delicatessen.
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food typically sold at a delicatessen, as cold cuts, salads, and pickles.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of deli
First recorded in 1950–55; by shortening
Explanation
A deli is a market where you can buy prepared food or shop for staples including meat and cheese. You might have a favorite neighborhood deli where you go every morning for a bagel and coffee. The word deli is a shortened form, or common nickname, of delicatessen, an American English version of the German delikatessen, the plural of delikatesse, "delicacy," or "fine food." Many delis specialize in the food of a certain region, country, or ethnicity — like a Jewish deli, a German deli, or a Greek deli. You can usually buy sandwiches, salads, drinks, and specialty foods at delis.
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:
It also lends the sandwich the air of something procured from a real cute deli, perhaps one with handwritten menu boards and expensive sparkling water.
From Salon ● Jul. 30, 2026
While popular variations use turkey, roast beef, pastrami and other deli meats, the original version on offer at the 99-year-old Town Hall Delicatessen is still made with ham and beef tongue.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
Sat Bains ran a breakfast pop-up on Sunday at a small deli in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, to support local businesses during a difficult time for the hospitality industry nationally.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
And he added that the company operates in an industry niche — prepared deli food — that has a combined $40 billion in U.S. sales.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
I delivered food for a small deli in Park Slope.
From "Between the World and Me" by Ta-Nehisi Coates
But Ottolenghi, who has 11 restaurants, cafes and delis, described the situation was "crippling" - not just for his own business, but for others running bakeries, cafes, and pubs.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
The company changed its name to Restaurant Depot in the 1990s and started serving more food operators across the U.S. including caterers, pizzerias and delis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
The rising cost of eggs has left one of the most famous delis in Los Angeles scrambling to keep up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2025
Last September, delis officially earned their “It” status within the high fashion world when whimsical clothing designer Batsheva Hay debuted her Spring 2023 collection at the famed Ben’s Kosher Deli amid New York Fashion Week.
From Salon ● Oct. 8, 2023
Now I get mocked by these groceries, pizza places, ice-cream stores, delis, Chinese places, bakeries, sushi joints, McDonald’ses.
From "It’s Kind of a Funny Story" by Ned Vizzini
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.
