Fat Tuesday

American

[fat tooz-dey, -dee, tyooz-] / ˈfæt ˈtuz deɪ, -di, ˈtyuz- /

noun

Mardi Gras, the day before Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent: probably named for the practice of consuming rich foods such as butter and eggs in order to use them up before the fast of Lent.

Etymology

Origin of Fat Tuesday

First recorded in 1865–70

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.

Mardi Gras, which translates as Fat Tuesday, features floats, marching bands and dance crews across several days of free parades.

From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026

In fact, I’m the Aunt Crabby who didn’t think we should even be holding our citywide Super Bowl street party on Ash Wednesday, when everyone knows that Fat Tuesday is the right day for revelry.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 20, 2024

The drive-through is usually open on Fridays through Sundays, but customers have asked if the couple would be selling cakes on Fat Tuesday.

From New York Times • Feb. 12, 2024

Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is the culmination of Carnival season, which officially begins each year on Jan. 6, the 12th day after Christmas, and closes with the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 20, 2023

All the Sundays, departing from the first January, up till Fat Tuesday.

From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 15, No. 90, June, 1875 by Various

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