kitchenette
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of kitchenette
Explanation
A kitchenette is a very small, scaled-down area for doing basic cooking and food preparation. If your fancy hotel suite has a kitchenette, you can make popcorn in the microwave. The suffix -ette is used as a diminutive, to mean "a small version," and that's just what a kitchenette is — a kitchen, but smaller. Sometimes a kitchenette is distinguished by its pint-sized appliances, like miniature refrigerators and narrow stovetops. It might also be missing certain standard elements of a kitchen, like a sink or a dishwasher. If you're staying in a hotel or living in a college dorm, a kitchenette can be all the kitchen you need.
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:
A small kitchenette installed on each floor cost nearly 8,000 euros, excluding appliances.
From Barron's ● Jul. 17, 2026
The building has a kitchenette, bedroom and bathroom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
The ADU has a roomy kitchenette with white cabinets and countertops, a compact air fryer-toaster oven from Our Place, and a slim retro-style refrigerator from Unique.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 7, 2026
The dwelling offers ample room for a Kardahsian-Jenner-sized brood, boasting eight bedrooms and eight full bathrooms, including an attached guest suite with a private entrance, kitchenette, sitting area, and courtyard.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 30, 2026
But at that moment, I was wearing the dress to cook hot dogs, watching them swell and bob in the boiling water as the late-morning sunlight filtered in through the trailer’s small kitchenette window.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
With features such as kitchenettes and expanded living spaces, extended-stay hotels are booming.
From New York Times ● Jan. 18, 2024
The Detroit building had elevated Legionella levels in its rooftop cooling tower, kitchenettes and a holding facility.
From Washington Times ● Sep. 21, 2023
More private options include a standard room with a shared bath and compact cabins with kitchenettes and private bathrooms.
From Seattle Times ● May 10, 2023
Hacienda del Sol, 610 Palm Canyon Drive, open but still under renovation, currently offers six motor-lodge rooms and six “casita” units with kitchenettes, as well as a heated 40-foot swimming pool.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 5, 2023
Housewives who operate kitchenettes in Manhattan will appreciate the amount of room which the cook has.
From Our Navy in the War by Perry, Lawrence
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.
