feta

[fet-uh]

noun

a soft, white, brine-cured Greek cheese made from sheep's milk or goat's milk.

Origin of feta

1935–40; < Modern Greek, short for tyrì phéta, equivalent to tyrí cheese (Greek tyrós) + phéta slice < Italian fetta (see fettuccine)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for feta

Contemporary Examples of feta

Mozzarella, ricotta and burrata all come from the south of Italy; feta is from Greece.
Elegy to Italian Cheese
Jesse Dart
May 21, 2011
You can eat it with powdered sugar, but my favorite is with feta cheese and raspberry jam or fresh raspberries.
How to Make Petulla, Albanian Fried Dough
Petrit Husenaj
January 12, 2011
This watermelon, feta, and black olive salad recipe from Nigella Lawson reminds me of that.
Fresh Picks
José Andrés
August 25, 2009
Watermelon is also unbelievably good with a salty cheese like feta.
Fresh Picks
José Andrés
August 25, 2009
Watermelon, Feta and Black Olive Saladby Nigella Lawson The star chef combines improbable ingredients that beguile the palate.
What to Eat
Cookstr.com
July 21, 2009

Historical Examples of feta

Feta is soft and as blinding white as a plate of fresh Ricotta smothered with sour cream.
The Complete Book of Cheese
Robert Carlton Brown
A more exciting olive cream may be made with Greek Calatma olives and Feta sheep cheese.
The Complete Book of Cheese
Robert Carlton Brown

British Dictionary definitions for feta

feta

noun

a white sheep or goat cheese popular in Greece

Word Origin for feta

Modern Greek, from the phrase turi pheta, from turi cheese + pheta, from Italian fetta a slice

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