hamburger

noun

ham·​burg·​er ˈham-ˌbər-gər 

variants or hamburg

ˈham-ˌbərg 

1

a

: ground beef

b

: a patty of ground beef

2

: a sandwich consisting of a patty of hamburger in a split typically round bun

Examples of hamburger in a Sentence

They served hot dogs and hamburgers at the cookout.

Add the cooked hamburger to the sauce.

Recent Examples on the Web

Wendy was just 8 years old when her father, Dave Thomas, made the decision to name his hamburger restaurant after one of his five children. —Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 24 Nov. 2025

However, in the aforementioned 1959 cookbook, Beau Monde is used in recipes for Spanish rice, beef stew, hamburgers, and gumbo. —Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 22 Nov. 2025

The report says a 47-year-old airplane pilot in New Jersey fell ill four hours after eating a hamburger at a barbecue in 2024. —NPR, 15 Nov. 2025

And while one person’s go-to hamburger snack might be another’s katsu sando or chivito, there’s hardly a country on the planet that doesn’t turn to some type of bread with something stuffed inside it to cure a craving. —Terry Ward, CNN Money, 15 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

German Hamburger of Hamburg, Germany

First Known Use

1884, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

hamburger

noun

ham·​burg·​er ˈham-ˌbər-gər 

variants or hamburg

-ˌbərg 

1

a

: ground beef

b

: a cooked patty of ground beef

2

: a sandwich consisting of a patty of hamburger in a split round bun

Etymology

German Hamburger (adjective) "of Hamburg," city in Germany

Word Origin

It may seem odd that there isn't any ham in a hamburger. The origins of the word hamburger, however, have nothing to do with a type of meat. The word really comes from the name of the German city Hamburg. Hamburger, when capitalized, means "of Hamburg." Cakes of ground beef, often served raw, were a popular food in northern Germany in the 19th century, and so they became known in English as Hamburger steaks. The name was later shortened to hamburger. Most people no longer associate the word hamburger with the city of Hamburg, since the hamburger is now usually thought of as an American food.