minestrone
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of minestrone
1890–95; < Italian, equivalent to minestr ( a ) kind of soup (literally, something served; see minister) + -one augmentative suffix
Explanation
Minestrone is a hearty vegetable and pasta soup. If you go to an Italian restaurant for lunch, you can order a bowl of minestrone. Yum! Most minestrone is tomato-based and includes a variety of vegetables, pasta or rice, and beans. Historians believe that a version of minestrone was around before the beginning of the Roman Empire, when it was probably thickened with spelt flour. As time went on and bread became more common, the flour was mainly eliminated from minestrone, although it long had a reputation as "poor people's food." The word comes from the Italian minestra, "soup."
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.
I developed this perfect-for-April recipe for Minestrone Verde, a soupy stew of beans, greens and pasta, in January.
From Washington Post • Apr. 14, 2022
Cleaning stuck-on debris is easy: fill it with water and just let it soak: Lagostina Minestrone e Polenta five-quart stewpot, $199.99, homeandcookstore.com.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2016
Except for red letters spelling the name of a different variety on each label — Tomato, Minestrone, etc. — they appear nearly identical.
From New York Times • May 7, 2015
Example: Healthy Choice Minestrone Soup appears to be a single serving of soup, but the nutrition panel says it contains about two servings.
From Washington Post • May 27, 2010
Variation: Chicken Minestrone Add 1 cup chopped stewed tomatoes in their juice and 2 cups cooked, drained fusilli or other pasta and 1/2-cup cooked kidney beans when adding zucchini and potatoes.
From The Perdue Chicken Cookbook by Perdue, Mitzi
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.
