Swiss cheese

American  

noun

1. a firm, pale-yellow cheese made originally in Switzerland, typically made from cow's milk and having many holes.

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Swiss cheese British  

noun

1. a hard white or pale yellow cheese with holes, such as Gruyère or Emmenthal

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Etymology

Origin of Swiss cheese

First recorded in 1815–25

Example Sentences

Gohl treated himself to a Jersey Mike’s sub, the No. 9 with turkey, roast beef and Swiss cheese, for around $12.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025

The Swiss cheese stretched like taffy when you pulled a slider apart.

From Salon • Sep. 30, 2025

To a certain extent, the Swiss cheese approach in these cases makes sense.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 23, 2024

“Although it had as much time as needed to prepare, BOP’s operational plan for closure of FCI Dublin was ill-conceived and, like Swiss cheese, full of holes,” the judge wrote Wednesday.

From Seattle Times • May 9, 2024

Desdemona asked her husband, holding up a letter that resembled Swiss cheese.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides