Parmesan

noun

Par·​me·​san ˈpär-mə-ˌzän 

-ˌzhän,

-zən,

-ˌzan 

: a very hard dry sharply flavored cheese that is sold grated or in wedges

sprinkled grated Parmesan over the spaghetti

Examples of Parmesan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Choose from three preparations that include the classic Rockefeller (spinach, bacon, Parmesan), Mon Louis (Brie and roasted garlic), or O’Cocker (garlic, butter, Parmesan). —Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 8 Aug. 2025

Go for dinner at Rolf and Daughters—a favorite of Roman Josi, captain of NHL team the Nashville Predators—and tuck into New American dishes like heirloom tomatoes with prosciutto, yuzu, and Parmesan. —Aislyn Greene, AFAR Media, 5 Aug. 2025

Lightly sauté spinach with a little butter, and sprinkle with Parmesan and lemon for a great side dish. —Nancy Lebrun, Verywell Health, 4 Aug. 2025

Start with a creative take on the classic Caesar salad, a full head of baby gem lettuce coated with a Parmesan dressing, served with crisp cream cheese balls and sourdough croutons. —Constance Ogle, Miami Herald, 1 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for Parmesan cheese; Parmesan "of the city of Parma," borrowed from Middle French parmisan, probably borrowed from a western Upper Italian variant of Tuscan parmigiano, from Parma "Parma" + -igiano, adjective suffix of appurtenance, from Vulgar Latin *-ēs- (going back to Latin -ensis, adjective suffix of place) + Latin -iānus -ian entry 2

Note: The expected Tuscan (and standard Italian) outcome of -igiano would be -iciano; cf. standard Italian bacio "kiss" (from Latin bāsium), usually pronounced [ˈba šo], but Ligurian [ˈba žu], Trentino (northwest Italy) [ˈba žo] (see Gerhard Rohlfs, Grammatica storica della lingua italiana e dei suoi dialetti: Sintassi e formazione delle parole, Turin, 1969, p. 392). The form -igiano with a voiced consonant hence presumably reflects Upper Italian influence. For instances of the same suffix as borrowed into French see courtesan, partisan entry 1. The common American English pronunciation of Parmesan with \zh\ may show dialectal Italian influence.

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Parmesan

• aileron
• antiphon
• autobahn
• carillon
• castellan
• celadon
• cephalon
• chitosan
• cynodon
• denouement
• deuteron
• echelon

Kids Definition

Parmesan

noun

Par·​me·​san ˈpär-mə-ˌzän  -ˌzhän 

-zən,

-ˌzan

: a very hard dry sharply flavored cheese that is sold grated or in wedges