crumpet
Americannoun
-
crumpets
plural
-
a round soft unsweetened bread resembling a muffin, cooked on a griddle or the like, and often toasted.
-
British Slang. a sexually attractive woman.
noun
-
a light soft yeast cake full of small holes on the top side, eaten toasted and buttered
-
(in Scotland) a large flat sweetened cake made of batter
-
slang women collectively
-
slang a sexually desirable woman
-
slang utterly worthless
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of crumpet
1350–1400; short for crumpetcake curled cake, equivalent to Middle English crompid (past participle of crumpen, variant of crampen to bend, curl ( see cramp 1) + cake
Explanation
A crumpet is a spongy bread that's cooked on a griddle and served warm with butter. Crumpets are a delicious alternative to toast or English muffins. Crumpets were probably invented in Wales as a way to make bread without access to an oven. Like English muffins, they're cooked on a hot pan or griddle, but crumpets are made from a batter, rather than a dough. Etymologists suspect that crumpet may derive from crompid cake, "wafer," or literally "curled-up cake," and its root, which is shared with crumple.
Vocabulary lists containing crumpet
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:
He writes that they shared tea, cakes and sandwiches - with the duke saying he ate a crumpet with Marmite.
From BBC ● Jan. 10, 2023
It was our childhood – or, at least, the crumpet was: its buttery lattice and doughy insides up there with Live and Kicking as a highlight of Saturday mornings.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 25, 2019
Analysis: This category is crazy crowded, so much so that I can’t even see the crumpet contingent managing to put “Downton’s” Maggie Smith back among the nominees.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2016
We also use words like fortnight and crumpet and jolly good, so we should probably not be taken very seriously.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2014
Duane had never refused a crumpet since they’d met.
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
![]()
"The world's gone mad", he told BBC News, arguing the government legislation should draw a clearer distinction between crumpets and more traditional junk food like fried chicken.
From BBC ● Dec. 4, 2024
When compared to preparing other breakfast classics, such as muffins, scones, or yeasted crumpets, pikelets make for an easygoing weekend morning.
From Salon ● Mar. 26, 2022
“Sims 4: Cottage Living,” released in July, added dishes inspired by the English countryside, including bangers and mash, beef Wellington, crumpets and Yorkshire pudding.
From New York Times ● Feb. 7, 2022
Open since 1976, the Crumpet Shop is the only place in the Market to get delightfully squishy, hot griddled crumpets.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 20, 2021
“Before you serve tea and crumpets, would you mind tellin’ me where we’re goin’?”
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
![]()
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.