falafel

noun

fa·​la·​fel fə-ˈlä-fəl 

variants or less commonly felafel

plural falafel also felafel

: a spicy mixture of ground vegetables (such as chickpeas or fava beans) formed into balls or patties and then fried

Examples of falafel in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

If fries aren’t your jam, all four meat options — chicken, lamb, steak and falafel — are available as a standard gyro wrapped in a pita bread or as a platter with rice. —Sacbee.com, 12 Sep. 2025

Sip specialty cocktails, beer, wine, and champagne while scarfing down Mediterranean favorites like kabobs, shawarma, gyros, falafel, wing platters, and desserts such as baklava and New York cheesecake. —Nasha Smith, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025

Luna Grill serves kabobs, pitas, salads and plates with a choice of chicken, beef, lamb, shrimp, salmon and falafel. —Carlos Rico, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Sep. 2025

Another ode to the Midwest comes in Purslane’s walleye falafel ($21), where bits of the freshwater fish are folded into classic chickpea falafel batter and deep fried. —Rachel Bernhard, jsonline.com, 29 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Arabic falāfil

First Known Use

1936, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for falafel

• unlawful
• awful
• lawful
• offal
• waffle