deli
Americannoun
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delis
plural
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a delicatessen.
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food typically sold at a delicatessen, as cold cuts, salads, and pickles.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of deli
First recorded in 1950–55; by shortening
Explanation
A deli is a market where you can buy prepared food or shop for staples including meat and cheese. You might have a favorite neighborhood deli where you go every morning for a bagel and coffee. The word deli is a shortened form, or common nickname, of delicatessen, an American English version of the German delikatessen, the plural of delikatesse, "delicacy," or "fine food." Many delis specialize in the food of a certain region, country, or ethnicity — like a Jewish deli, a German deli, or a Greek deli. You can usually buy sandwiches, salads, drinks, and specialty foods at delis.
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:
During an appearance on the “St. Brown Podcast” this week, Lake mentioned that Herbert “was throwing deli meat” and “seeing ghosts” during the game.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
Jenkins said her favourite part of the show was the deli counter, hung with salami, Parma ham, lemons, chillies and strings of onions and garlic.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
“He was throwing deli meat out there,” Rams safety Quentin Lake said this week on the “St. Brown Podcast,” apparently joining the current inclination of using sandwich-related metaphors to describe bad passes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
AI-generated food pictures are appearing on everything from takeout menus to deli displays, but turning heads for all the wrong reasons, Isabella Simonetti writes for the Journal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
I nibble on a carrot stick as Emily talks about how her dad owns his own construction business and Soojin shares her parents’ challenges running their deli.
From "Amina's Voice" by Hena Khan
Sure, New York City and Chicago still have many such places that also double as classic delis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
But Ottolenghi, who has 11 restaurants, cafes and delis, described the situation was "crippling" - not just for his own business, but for others running bakeries, cafes, and pubs.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
The company changed its name to Restaurant Depot in the 1990s and started serving more food operators across the U.S. including caterers, pizzerias and delis.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 30, 2026
“Once Hector’s took off, it felt like similar-style sandwich delis started popping up everywhere,” says Ross Howse, Melbourne-based digital creator of Bangin’ Sangas social media accounts.
From Salon ● Apr. 24, 2025
They were called delis, and there were foreign symbols in the windows, and underneath them the word kosher.
From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
