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side dish

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noun
  1. a serving of a portion of food in addition to the principal food, usually on a separate dish.
  2. the small additional dish used for such food.
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Origin of side dish

First recorded in 1715–25
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for side-dish

Historical Examples

  • Put the artichokes in the sauce this second time to heat them and serve especially as a side-dish for boiled meat.

    The Italian Cook Book

    Maria Gentile

  • This, which can also be served as a side-dish, is made especially when you have boiled fish of good quality left over.

  • They are not partial to long introductory soups, and totally disregard all side-dish references and quotations.

  • In addition to the meat and potatoes there was one vegetable in a side-dish and as dessert four prunes.

    The Oakdale Affair

    Edgar Rice Burroughs

  • Some put it into the soup; but the best way is to send it up on a plate, as a side-dish.

British Dictionary definitions for side-dish

side dish

noun
  1. a portion of food served in addition to the main dish
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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

Word Origin and History for side-dish

n.

1725, from side (adj.) + dish (n.). Restaurant phrase on the side "apart from the main dish" is attested from 1884, American English.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper