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• fast food
  fast food

  noun

  food, as hamburgers, pizza, or fried chicken, that is prepared in quantity by a standardized method and can be dispensed quickly at inexpensive restaurants for eating there or elsewhere.
• fast-food
  fast-food

  adjective

  of or specializing in fast food.

fast food

¹ American  

noun

1. food, as hamburgers, pizza, or fried chicken, that is prepared in quantity by a standardized method and can be dispensed quickly at inexpensive restaurants for eating there or elsewhere.

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fast-food ² American  

[fast-food, fahst-] / ˈfæstˈfud, ˈfɑst- /

adjective

1. of or specializing in fast food.

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fast food British  

noun

1. food that requires little preparation before being served

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adjective

1. (of a restaurant, café, etc) serving such food

Usage

​What does fast food mean?​ Fast food is food quickly prepared and served, often at chain restaurants and typically associated with less expensive and less nutritious items like hamburgers, french fries, and soft drinks.

Etymology

Origin of fast food¹

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70

Origin of fast-food²

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fast food fast-food

He branched into insurance, spotting how annuity savers’ years of steady premiums could be a good match for multigenerational investments in sports, fast food and technology.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

The launch of the Big Crispy sandwich came with a marketing campaign intended to take fast food to “food court,” with a pop-up event in New York featuring a courthouse facade.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

But cosplayers can also embody everything from fast food brands, internet browsers and memes to intangible ideas like gravity or hunger, while also experimenting with gender.

From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026

While some fast food joints have over-innovated to the point where customers see it as tiring or gimmicky, Taco Bell appears to have found the right balance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026

A school bus is a fast food joint with extra value and no food.

From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds

California also raised the state minimum wage for fast-food employees from $16 to $20, something Sfeir said could account for some of the change.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026

The photographs were almost absurdly theatrical: silver serving pieces and candelabras, the gilt-and-cream grandeur of the White House, and, arrayed beneath it all, mountains of branded fast-food packaging.

From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026

And amid the ongoing fast-food discount wars, analysts note that Wendy’s value menu has perhaps gotten too complex.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 8, 2026

Restaurant Brands International’s profit rose in the second quarter, driven by a standout performance at Burger King U.S. that bucked a broader trend of slowing fast-food demand across other major chains.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

Trash cans overflowed with fast-food wrappers and soda bottles.

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby