spaghetti

[spuh-get-ee]

noun

1. a white, starchy pasta of Italian origin that is made in the form of long strings, boiled, and served with any of a variety of meat, tomato, or other sauces.

2. Electricity.,  an insulating tubing of small diameter into which bare wire can be slipped.

spaghetti

/ spəˈɡɛtɪ /

noun

1. pasta in the form of long strings

Usage

See zucchini.

Word History and Origins

Origin of spaghetti¹

1885–90; < Italian, plural of spaghetto, diminutive of spago thin rope < Late Latin spacus twine, probably < Greek sphákos long-threaded lichen

Word History and Origins

Origin of spaghetti¹

C19: from Italian: little cords, from spago a cord

Example Sentences

These protein structures form long, thin fibers that resemble strands of spaghetti.

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On the menu today is spaghetti served with canned vegetables and tomato sauce and flavoured with generous handfuls of spices.

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About all I knew was they were 100 percent Italian, and Italians were Catholic and liked to eat spaghetti.

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The Commerce Department acted after a long-running probe into pricing practices for the product that goes into everything from spaghetti Bolognese to mac and cheese.

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Why doesn't spaghetti fall apart when it's boiled?

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Related Words

• gnocchi 
• linguine 
• macaroni 
• ravioli 
• tortellini 

When To Use

Spelling tips for spaghetti

The word spaghetti is hard to spell because, based on how it is pronounced, you wouldn't expect that h to be there. The double t can also be easy to miss. How to spell spaghetti: To remember how to properly spell spaghetti, you can think of the phrase "There is a ghost in Betty's spaghetti." This reminds you that there is a g followed by an h in the middle of the word, like in the spelling of ghost. It also reminds you of the ending -ett, similar to the double t you find in the word Betty.