fish and chips

American

noun

(used with a singular or plural verb)

fried fish fillets and French fries.

fish and chips British

noun

fish fillets coated with batter and deep-fried, eaten with potato chips

"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

Etymology

Origin of fish and chips

First recorded in 1875–80

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:

fish and chips

The Spen Valley Labour MP has just treated her staff to fish and chips, and her desk is overflowing with paperwork.

From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026

"I think it's cool that he's here," said Harry James, 21, who works in a fish and chips shop in New York.

From BBC ● Apr. 29, 2026

I ate fish and chips every week for a year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026

The classic recipe for fish and chips -- white fish deep-fried in batter, chips, and mushy peas, often with tartare sauce on the side -- dates back to the 1860s.

From Barron's ● Apr. 5, 2026

He’s sitting up in bed finishing his fish and chips, dropping to the floor the Limerick Leader they were wrapped in, wiping his mouth and hands with the blanket.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt

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