marzipan
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of marzipan
1535–45; < German < Italian marzapane. See marchpane
Explanation
Marzipan is a sweet, soft candy made from ground almonds and sugar. Sometimes marzipan is dyed with food coloring and shaped into fruit, animals, or people — so if your niece loves going to the zoo, you might top her birthday cake with marzipan elephants and lions. You can buy marzipan in a tube or roll from stores that sell baking supplies. It can be rolled out into thin sheets and used as icing, covered in chocolate, or mixed into breads and cakes like stollen and Louisiana king cake. If you love the flavor of almonds, you'll probably like marzipan. It was originally called marchpane and was even mentioned in Romeo and Juliet. Experts think the word derives from martius panis, or "bread of March" in Latin.
Vocabulary lists containing marzipan
World Cuisine - Introductory
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World Cuisine - Middle School and High School
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2015 Spelling Bee - Words from Round 2
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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.
Marzipan pigs — aka, almond paste and sugar shaped into hogs — are gifted around New Year's in Germany and Austria to symbolize good fortune.
From Salon • Dec. 31, 2020
When the title character of Hoban’s “The Marzipan Pig” falls behind a sofa and is forgotten, he struggles with despair: “I am growing hard and bitter” yet “there is such sweetness in me.”
From Washington Post • Aug. 26, 2020
Victoria McFall, a draper for the costume shop, recalls the initial idea for the Marzipan tutus: Falconer handed her team a Tupperware container with a vintage doily inside.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 19, 2018
Marzipan is J. Mascis, the singer and guitarist from Dinosaur Jr.
From Slate • Oct. 31, 2018
Herr Baumgärtner, taking his Marzipan, went home to tell Katrina the news, laughing over his Christmas joke, and chuckling to himself: "Dat is vere dat pudding seems to belong!"
From The Misfit Christmas Puddings by Consolation, Club
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.
