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omelet

American  
[om-lit, om-uh-] / ˈɒm lɪt, ˈɒm ə- /
Or omelette

noun

  • omelets
    plural
  1. eggs beaten until frothy, often combined with other ingredients, as herbs, chopped ham, cheese, or jelly, and cooked until set.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms


Etymology

Origin of omelet

1605–15; < French omelette, earlier amelette, metathetic form of alemette, variant of alemelle literally, thin plate, variant of Old French lemelle < Latin lāmella. See lamella, -et


Explanation

An omelet is a dish you might order for breakfast or brunch — it's kind of like a folded pancake made of beaten eggs, sometimes with the addition of vegetables, cheese, or meat. Yum. A good omelet is a little bit fluffy, but firm enough to contain its filling. You cook an omelet by whisking eggs with a bit of water or milk and cooking them quickly over high heat without stirring. You can then fold the omelet in half to serve it. While the French word omelette was first used in the 1600s, the omelet itself may be more than two hundred years older than that. The Latin root, lamella, means "thin plate."

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing omelet

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 brasserie-like Café Clement serves an all-day menu developed by head chef Danny Bohan, formerly of the River Cafe, whose signature lobster omelet is among the fare.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

"We have a saying in the breakfast business that you can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs, you know?" he said.

From Barron's ● Mar. 21, 2026

Fit for Sunday mornings at Balmoral, this one will weather decades of omelet service and crossword solving.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 20, 2025

Occasionally I will get up and make an omelet with all the things and some smothered potatoes, and bring it upstairs on a cart with some juice.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2025

Pearl swallowed a forkful of omelet and shook her head.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Earlier this year, Cal-Maine acquired Echo Lake Foods, which makes ready-to-eat breakfast foods, such as omelets, scrambled eggs, and pancakes.

From Barron's ● Jan. 6, 2026

They were all seated in coach and paid $20 each for the breakfast quesadillas and omelets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025

The busy brunch spot offers something for everyone, with a variety of bowls, hashes, benedicts, and omelets.

From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2025

They also have really good omelets and turkey bacon.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2025

It’s crazy stocked with everything from waffles to mini Spanish omelets to samosas and halal sausages, kept hot in those silver warmers.

From "Saints and Misfits" by S.K. Ali

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