First recorded in 1650–60; special use of Mac
Shortened form
Shortened form
< Irish, Scots Gaelic mac son, Old Irish macc; akin to Welsh, Cornish mab
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Tossed with olive oil, tomatoes, jalapeño, feta and Parmesan cheese, the expertly al dente Rustichella rigatoni is not your everyday mac ‘n’ cheese dinner.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 23, 2026
The offerings include returning items, such as a smoky burger and chicken sandwich, plus a new side — mac and cheese.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 29, 2026
I once ordered it at a chain restaurant that shall remain diplomatically unnamed, only to discover that it was functionally identical to the toddler’s mac and cheese at our table.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
Just make the mac and cheese for dinner.
From Slate ● Jan. 20, 2026
“What’s wrong with mac and cheese, or chocolate chip cookies? American food,” Maddy adds.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
“Notably, despite these pricing actions, we have not observed any meaningful changes in Mac or iPad lead times,” Woodring wrote.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
You only have to see the clip of the pair hugging at the World Cup and Mac Allister giving his shirt to Klopp to see the warmth between the pair.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Across those games, Mac Allister has played 539 minutes, won 31 duels, 10 tackles, made nine interceptions and applied high pressure 208 times - all numbers which put him high up in the rankings.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
And we expect Apple Watch, iPad and Mac updates, too.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
He told his dad it was to help take care of his mom, but the truth is that Mac needed Bobby just as much as Dottie did.
From "Eleven" by Tom Rogers
“Mac Jones, for sure. Yeah, Mac. He’s the best,” Parker said.
From Washington Times ● Aug. 3, 2023
“My life was completely wrapped up in Fleetwood Mac. You can call in sick to a job, a boyfriend, even a husband, but you cannot call in sick to Fleetwood Mac – ever.”
From The Guardian ● Apr. 17, 2019
“It was only made for the Mac. It was less than one percent market share in the U.S. They like to say ‘low single digits.’
From The Verge ● Jun. 13, 2017
"He was the first person to buy a Mac. He was the first person to tell me about the Internet. I had no idea what he was talking about."
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2015
“Mac. Mac. Mac,” George said, saying Owen’s nickname with every panting breath he let out.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Apple tends to hold a second Mac- or iPad-focused event in the fall roughly every other year.
From Slate ● Sep. 11, 2018
Simply put: If your school requires any Mac- or Windows-only apps, then you can’t use an iPad in place of an actual laptop.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2018
Kathlene Mac- Donell is rather better as the cabaret performer.
From Time Magazine Archive
He went farther in ten days than did Britisher Mac- Laren, covering 5,468 miles in 45 hours and 20 minutes of actual flying time.
From Time Magazine Archive
While we were taking Bougainville, General Mac- Arthur’s forces would be landing on the western end of New Britain Island at Cape Gloucester to establish a new airfield there, too.
From "Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two" by Joseph Bruchac
The U.S. company—home to brands such as MAC, Smashbox and Jo Malone—has been undergoing a business turnaround under new leadership.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 24, 2026
He said that its “consumer-facing” investments included opening new retail locations for its luxury fragrance brands while closing some of its MAC and Origins locations.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 5, 2026
Yvonne Carvalho, a 5-foot dynamo with oversize black glasses and purple MAC lipstick, greeted the nurse anesthesiologist with a bear hug and questions about her dating life and her daughter.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
Inspired by her time as a UC Santa Barbara Chicano Studies major and retail jobs at stores like MAC Cosmetics, her gender inclusive and ethically made “Mexi-goth” brand was a hit out the gate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2025
I thought, true as steel, They would both come to heel, Making up for the pack Whistled off by false MAC, As though he'd ever shoot with my patience and skill!
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 101, August 15, 1891 by Various
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.
