gumbo

1 of 2

noun (1)

gum·​bo ˈgəm-(ˌ)bō How to pronounce gumbo (audio)
plural gumbos
1
: a soup thickened with okra pods or filé and containing meat or seafoods and usually vegetables
2
3
a
: any of various fine-grained silty soils especially of the central U.S. that when wet become impervious and soapy or waxy and very sticky
b
: a heavy sticky mud
4
gumbo adjective

gumbo

2 of 2

noun (2)

often capitalized

Examples of gumbo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
While gumbo can contain multiple types of proteins, étouffée typically focuses on one, and usually has a thicker consistency than gumbo. Pam Lolley, Southern Living, 27 Nov. 2023 For this Stockton, California, native, the Juneteenth menu often includes macaroni and cheese, gumbo, cornbread, greens, and fried chicken. Danielle Broadway, Parents, 18 Nov. 2023 The fried chicken and gumbo are famous for a reason. Brett Anderson, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2023 The different cooking styles produced a range of popular meals centering on one-pot cooking to include stews or gumbos, or layering meat with greens. Rodney Coates, The Conversation, 14 Aug. 2023 In addition, there'll be peri peri chicken, pretzels, pickles, naan, nyama, gumbo, jambalaya, burgers, poutine, egg rolls, sushi and scones. Frank E. Lockwood, Arkansas Online, 28 Oct. 2023 Joyce had given them the perfect childhood, one that sounded like the Supremes, Fats Domino and Elvis on vinyl; felt cozy like dancing in the living room; and tasted like pot roast and potatoes, gumbo and fried chicken. AZCentral.com, 28 Aug. 2023 They were seen as a weird gumbo of alternative hip-hop that featured rhymes in Haitian Creole and live instrumentation on songs that relied on Hill’s melodies and Jean’s showmanship. Timothy Bella, Washington Post, 17 Oct. 2023 Ingredients like ginger and turmeric meld with blue crab, roux and okra in Saffron’s curry seafood gumbo. Brett Anderson, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gumbo.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

American French gombo, of Bantu origin; akin to Umbundu ochinggômbo okra

Noun (2)

American French gombo, perhaps from Kongo nkômbô runaway slave

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1805, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1838, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of gumbo was in 1805

Dictionary Entries Near gumbo

Cite this Entry

“Gumbo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gumbo. Accessed 10 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

gumbo

noun
gum·​bo
ˈgəm-bō
plural gumbos
1
a
: okra
b
: a soup thickened with okra pods
2
: any of various silty soils that become very sticky when wet

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