menu

[men-yoo]

noun

1. 1. a list of the dishes that can be ordered in a restaurant or that will be served at a formal meal; bill of fare.

      Ask the waiter for a menu.

   2. the dishes themselves.

      First on the menu was a delicious broccoli soup.

2. any list or set of items, activities, etc., from which to choose.

   What's on the menu this weekend—golf, tennis, swimming?

3. Digital Technology.,  a list of options available to a user, as displayed on a screen or listed in a recorded telephone greeting.

   From the main menu at the top of the window, select Tools and then Internet Options.

verb (used with object)

1. to make available for ordering at a restaurant.

   There will be one entrée and one salad menued each day.

   Some casual restaurants have begun menuing alcoholic beverages.

menu

/ ˈmɛnjuː /

noun

1. a list of dishes served at a meal or that can be ordered in a restaurant

2. a list of options displayed on a visual display unit from which the operator selects an action to be carried out by positioning the cursor or by depressing the appropriate key

Other Word Forms

• menued adjective
• menuing noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of menu¹

First recorded in 1650–60; from French: “detailed list,” noun use of menu “small, detailed,” from Latin minūtus minute ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of menu¹

C19: from French menu small, detailed (list), from Latin minūtus _minute ²

Example Sentences

Pressured by rising labor and ingredient costs, many fast-food chains have aggressively raised menu prices to offset the inputs—a move that has pushed many diners away.

Read more on Barron's

But that time, the first of many, I chose to forgo the traditional sharing of turkey and toxic dysfunction for the promise of a tension-free Thanksgiving dinner based on a menu I designed.

Read more on Salon

Sit in a dim restaurant with someone over 60, and you might hear, "Hold on -- let me pull out my cell phone. I need more light to read the menu!"

Read more on Science Daily

I studied the pages like scripture — cross-referencing crust ratios, comparing jam methods, building a menu as though I were prepping for an exam.

Read more on Salon

After years of nudging menu prices higher, fast-food chains and other restaurants have tried to win over customers with bigger value deals.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• card 
• cuisine 
• food 
• table