Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com

nacho

American  
[nah-choh] / ˈnɑ tʃoʊ /

noun

Mexican Cooking.
  • nachos
    plural
  1. a snack or appetizer consisting of a tortilla chip topped with cheese, pickled jalapeño peppers, refried beans, etc., and baked or broiled.


nacho British  
/ ˈnɑːtʃəʊ /

noun

  1. Mexican cookery a snack consisting of a piece of tortilla topped with cheese, hot peppers, etc, and grilled

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of nacho

First recorded in 1945–50; from Mexican Spanish Nacho, nickname for the male given name Ignacio, specifically, Ignacio Anaya, a Mexican chef who supposedly invented the dish in the mid-1940s

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:

Did free chips and salsa, with nacho cheese fountains, not make the cut?

From The Wall Street Journal Aug. 19, 2026

"There will be another nacho bar. Grander, bigger. That's going to be my centre-piece," she said.

From BBC Jun. 11, 2026

Then I went home and I sat on the couch with a family-sized bag of nacho Doritos.”

From Salon Aug. 21, 2024

The other fillings seemed to be present — seasoned beef, nacho cheese sauce, iceberg lettuce, tomato and sour cream make this a sort of reconfigured burrito.

From Seattle Times Dec. 5, 2023

On the wet sidewalk covered with drips of mustard and cheesy nacho crumbs.

From "P.S. I Miss You" by Jen Petro-Roy

“We have a few really die-hard salad customers and a few folks who love the fully loaded nachos with all of the vegetables,” Fluhler said.

From MarketWatch Jul. 18, 2026

My wife and I will go to the games and eat Dodger Dogs and nachos.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 5, 2026

And on Sunday night, as America was heating up nachos for Super Bowl parties, Team USA’s skaters were lacing up for their own winner-take-all showdown.

From The Wall Street Journal Feb. 9, 2026

Tripe stew, nachos, even “mac” and cheese arrive with ridged, cut-up fried dough standing in for potatoes, tortilla chips, or pasta.

From Salon Dec. 6, 2025

When I returned, I sat down and gave Patrick and Sam the nachos and Sam her diet coke.

From "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" by Stephen Chbosky

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Join 12,000,000 vocabulary learners

Start learning new words today on VocabTrainer.
You'll remember them forever.

Start training