hors d'oeuvre
Americannoun
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a small bit of appetizing food, as spicy meat, fish, cheese, or a preparation of chopped or creamed foods, often served on crackers or small pieces of toast, for eating at cocktail parties or other gatherings where drinks are served with no other food.
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an appetizer, as a relish or more elaborate preparation, served before or as the first course of a meal.
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hors d'oeuvre
1705–15; < French: outside of the main course
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.
While these are elegant enough for a party hors d’oeuvre or nibble for a champagne brunch, I like the extra flair when there’s no special occasion other than sitting down to a family meal.
From Washington Post • Mar. 29, 2023
Do you need a last-minute hors d’oeuvre to accompany all that bubbly you’ve got in the fridge?
From New York Times • Dec. 31, 2022
Pimiento Cheese This mixture is a great hors d’oeuvre when it’s made with our own regional cheese and served with whole-grain crackers.
From Seattle Times • Jun. 11, 2022
It makes for an easy and impressive pantry hors d'oeuvre.
From Salon • Aug. 18, 2021
Scheer had assembled a nice hors d’oeuvre platter from meager sources.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
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.
