kebab

American  

[kuh-bob] / kəˈbɒb /

Also kebob, or kabob

noun

1. Usually kebabs small pieces of meat or seafood seasoned or marinated and broiled, often with tomatoes, green peppers, onions, or other vegetables, usually on a skewer.

2. (in Indian English use) roast meat.

3. Digital Technology. kebab menu.

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kebab British  

/ kəˈbæb /

noun

1. Also called: shish kebab.   kabob.   cabob.  a dish consisting of small pieces of meat, tomatoes, onions, etc, threaded onto skewers and grilled, generally over charcoal

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Etymology

Origin of kebab

First recorded in 1665–75; from Arabic, from Hindi kabāb, from Turkish kebap “roast meat”

Explanation

A kebab is a dish of vegetables, meat, or seafood cut into pieces, skewered, and cooked on a grill. On the first day of summer, your family might like to cook kebabs and have all the neighbors over. In the U.S., a kebab is generally understood to be a shish kebab — marinated cubes of meat alternating with chunks of onion, green pepper, or other veggies on a long skewer and cooked over a fire. English speakers outside of North America are more familiar with the doner kebab, a sandwich similar to a gyro or shawarma, with sliced meat served in a flatbread. The Arabic root word, kabāb, means "roasted meat."

Example Sentences

Swifties also flock to a kebab shop where she filmed part of the End Game music video in 2016.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

The Turkish federation failed to consult Germany's kebab industry, which hit back with the support of the government in Berlin.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2025

Germany's kebab industry would have particularly skewered, as the quintessential high street doner has evolved over the decades to be rather different than the original from Turkey.

From BBC • Sep. 26, 2025

Now, Martin is a father to an 8-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son — the same age he was when manning his Greek family’s shish kebab stand on the Jersey Shore.

From Los Angeles Times • May 17, 2025

He was tired of dreaming about being a shish kebab.

From "Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan