jello

American  

[jel-oh] / ˈdʒɛl oʊ /

noun

1. a gelatin dessert.

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Etymology

Origin of jello

Genericized spelling of trademarked Jell-O

Explanation

Jello is a sweet, fruit-flavored food that's thickened with gelatin. When you're recovering from having your wisdom teeth removed, jello may be the only thing you feel like eating for a while. Desserts made with gelatin are often generally referred to as jello (or jelly in the U.K.) although the official trademarked name is Jell-O. This light, sweet treat is a favorite of kids who like its bright colors and jiggly consistency. It's also common in hospitals, since eating jello is an easy way for patients to get extra hydration. So-called "jello salads" contain fruit, marshmallows, and nuts, suspended within the molded jello.

Example Sentences

But your homemade meals don’t have to resemble a frozen TV dinner, with its segmented tray of meat, an amorphous sauce, a scoop of peas or rice and a mysterious, saccharine lump of... jello?

From Salon • Mar. 30, 2025

Instead, it has to find the point where you’ll suspend disbelief and accept that the table is there, even if it objectively feels more like jello than hard wood.

From The Verge • Nov. 16, 2021

On one folding table, volunteers had laid out homemade treats, including jello squares, salted nuts, and oatmeal cookies made with M&M’s.

From The New Yorker • May 1, 2019

As far as kid-approved sides go, it was right up there with Grandma’s pineapple-strawberry jello mold, which somehow passed for fruit and was inexplicably laid out alongside the turkey instead of the pumpkin pie.

From Slate • Nov. 19, 2018

I’ve been watching cable television and eating jello.

From "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky