Definition of MACARONI

Did You Know?

As you may have suspected, the macaroni in the song "Yankee Doodle" is not the familiar food. The feather in Yankee Doodle's cap apparently makes him a macaroni in the now rare "fop" or "dandy" sense. The sense appears to have originated with a club established in London by a group of young, well-traveled Englishmen in the 1760s. The founders prided themselves on their appearance, sense of style, and manners, and they chose the name Macaroni Club to indicate their worldliness. Because macaroni was, at the time, a new and rather exotic food in England, the name was meant to demonstrate how stylish the club's members were. The members were themselves called macaronis, and eventually macaroni became synonymous with dandy and fop.

Examples of macaroni in a Sentence

the glitter rock of the 1970s seemed more about mascaraed macaronis than about music

Recent Examples on the Web

Others insist on baked macaroni and cheese, served in a brick the size of a pound of butter. — New York Times, "A Brooklyn Favorite for Jamaican Food Beats the Odds," 26 June 2018 About 50 penguins live in Penguin Palooza, including king penguins and macaroni, southern rockhopper, gentoo and chinstrap penguins. — Melissa Reinert, Cincinnati.com, "Paralyzed penguin wobbles on road to recovery at Newport Aquarium," 30 Apr. 2018 The Koshary includes macaroni, spaghetti, rice, tomato sauce, lentils, chickpeas, and fried crispy onions ($7.99). — Stephanie Schorow, BostonGlobe.com, "Home cooking — Egyptian style — in Medford," 27 Apr. 2018 Serve your macaroni and cheese in the center of the table, with your bowl of crispy bread crumbs for sprinkling over, and a lovely green salad. — Jamie Oliver, House Beautiful, "A Killer Mac 'N' Cheese by Jamie Oliver," 4 June 2014 His fried chicken, meanwhile, takes on a Southern charm with golden biscuits and crab macaroni and cheese. — Mike Sutter, WSJ, "The Best Under-the-Radar Food Destination in the U.S.," 19 Oct. 2018 Crop and filter dishes like a 20-ounce Chateaubriand, oxtail croquettes, and pork belly macaroni and cheese. — Kara Baskin, BostonGlobe.com, "Boston Chops opens in Downtown Crossing — with a $10,000 Instagram table," 31 May 2018 Mom and Dad—or however your family is made up—can enjoy the excellent drink menu while kids munch on classics like the PB&Jerry ($8.50) or macaroni and cheese ($9.50). — Shelbie Lynn Bostedt, RedEye Chicago, "The cool parents' guide to kid-friendly Chicago restaurants and bars," 11 May 2017 The cook prepared fried chicken, macaroni salad, coleslaw, and sweet tea, which Michael served. — Luzanne Otte, Town & Country, "A Day in the Life of Southern Charm's Patricia Altschul," 12 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'macaroni.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for macaroni

borrowed from regional Italian, plural of macarone (Tuscan maccherone) "tubular pasta," earlier also "stuffed pasta of various shapes," probably borrowed from Middle Greek makarṓneia "funeral hymn," later with the presumed meaning "food served at a funeral banquet" (whence Modern Greek dialect makarōniá in this sense), of uncertain origin

Note: Though the Greek origin of Italian macaroni appears likely, many details are unclear. It has been speculated that the word makarṓneia is a blend of makários "blessed" and aiṓnios "eternal" (words perhaps coupled in funeral orations and memorial services), though this etymology is quite tenuous. The development of the food sense is also difficult to explain—perhaps it has developed through association with Greek makaría "dish of broth and barley groats," an apparently ancient word of uncertain origin attested only in the work of the Greek lexicographer Hesychios (5th-6th century a.d.).

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