madeleine
noun
a small shell-shaped cake made of flour, eggs, sugar, and butter and baked in a mold.
madeleine
1 American
[mad-l-in, mad-l-ayn, ma duh-len]
/ ˈmæd l ɪn, ˌmæd lˈeɪn, madəˈlɛn /
noun
French Cooking.
-
madeleines
plural
-
a small shell-shaped cake made of flour, eggs, sugar, and butter and baked in a mold.
-
something that triggers memories or nostalgia: in allusion to a nostalgic passage in Proust's Remembrance of Things Past.
Madeleine
2
American
[mad-l-in, -lahyn, ma duh-len]
/ ˈmæd l ɪn, -ˌlaɪn, madəˈlɛn /
Also
Madelaine,
noun
madeleine
British
/ ˈmædəlɪn, -ˌleɪn /
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of madeleine
1835–45; < French, earlier gâteau à la Madeleine, after the female given name; the attribution of the recipe to an 18th-century cook named Madeleine Pau(l)mier is unsubstantiated
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:
The taste of a madeleine famously sent French writer Marcel Proust back into vivid memories of childhood.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 29, 2026
For him, pinball games unlock memories, much as the madeleine did for Proust.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
At least to this South Asian American, they were as vivid and powerful as any madeleine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 30, 2024
GERWIG: In “Remembrance of Things Past,” in “Swann’s Way,” he is literally thrown back into his childhood through the taste of the madeleine.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 20, 2023
She pops a raspberry cream puff in her mouth, chewing quickly, then takes three madeleine cookies.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
"There's a lot of evidence about Shell knowing as early as in the 1960s" that fossil fuels contributed to global warming, said Madeleine Lynch, a campaigner on the "Odette case."
From Barron's ● Oct. 15, 2026
By all accounts, though, Harp has given the role new meaning and her profile is significantly higher than that of her predecessors, such as Madeleine Westerhout in Trump's first administration.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Sean McCann - the younger brother of Madeleine McCann - will swim for Scotland at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Saturday.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
One was former Amnesty International and UN researcher Madeleine Penman, who investigated disappearances in Tamaulipas between 2015 and 2019.
From Barron's ● May 14, 2026
Madeleine told him to keep the coat and Joseph walked home, seven miles.
From "Orbiting Jupiter" by Gary D. Schmidt
For dessert, Proust's beloved madeleines and mirabelles jostled for attention with distinctly American-accented glazed doughnuts.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
A French grandmother hops aboard to teach passengers how to make apple-packed tarte Tatin and madeleines.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
On Jan. 21, lucky diners can get their hands on red envelopes stuffed with everything from a new year wish to gift cards for $25, madeleines or soft serve ice cream.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 18, 2023
They muse over certain passages and share echoes with their daily lives: the enduring memory of a late husband’s smile, or a hospital visit where madeleines were on the menu.
From New York Times ● Aug. 16, 2022
I’m reminded of those perfect Saturday afternoons when Dad would bake his famous madeleines and Mom would stop working to play board games with me and Andre at the kitchen table.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
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