First recorded in 1955–60; from Italian panini, plural of panino “a roll, sandwich,” diminutive of pane “bread,” from Latin pān- (stem of pānis ) “bread” + -ini, plural of diminutive suffix -ino, from Latin -īnus adjective suffix meaning “of or pertaining to, made of”; see -ine 1 ( def. )
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He also told us how to shape the roll so it didn’t become a panini.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 3, 2026
This summer, we rescued a panini press from our apartment building’s free table — one of those liminal spaces where abandoned houseplants and half-burned candles go to live out their second lives.
From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2025
Through the truck’s windows, a panini shop and a microblading clinic roll by.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2025
"We then made a kind of quesadilla or panini where the bismuth is the cheesy filling and the tortillas are the atomically flat surfaces," said Wu.
From Science Daily ● May 21, 2024
Annabeth ordered a panini and some fizzy water.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
Panini America alleged in a 2023 lawsuit that Fanatics used its “monopoly power” to jeopardize its trading card business.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 22, 2026
Players past and present meanwhile feature in the first Panini darts sticker album launched this year.
From Barron's ● Dec. 30, 2025
"It's not just football - there is a Panini collection of darts cards out now that I have just got my hands on too, so I am going to unpack them on my YouTube channel."
From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2024
Clark, who has endorsement deals with State Farm, Gatorade and Panini, also reportedly signed an eight-year, $28 million deal with Nike that includes a signature shoe.
From Seattle Times ● May 21, 2024
Did Namrata seriously just pull a fictional camp friend out of her ass and name him Hudson Panini?
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
Essentially a massive skillet, a good griddle can just as easily turn out pancakes for breakfast, paninis for lunch, or, yes, chicken thighs for dinner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Stir-fries, savory oats, rice bowls, flatbreads, paninis, pasta—whatever suits your style.
From Salon ● Dec. 28, 2025
Ottimo had paninis and family dishes that served four, like tomato-braised and roasted whole chicken.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 9, 2023
Farther down Tsentralna, at the Flower Cafe — which sells plants and bouquets as well as food — proprietress Tetiana Lytvynenko, 33, was serving up paninis and coffee.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 15, 2022
He could have moved on from bread bowls to paninis.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
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.
