mortadella

noun

mor·​ta·​del·​la ˌmȯr-tə-ˈde-lə How to pronounce mortadella (audio)
: a large smoked sausage made of beef, pork, and pork fat and seasoned with pepper and garlic

Examples of mortadella in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Some mortadellas are as big around as a beach ball, and watching workers armed with giant blades carve off thin, silky slices for sandwiches is hypnotic. Julia Moskin, New York Times, 28 Nov. 2023 Voodoo Vin and Happy Mediums Deli chef and co-owner Shea Montanez are making their own mortadella. Los Angeles Times, 28 Jan. 2023 Top mortadella with about ½ cup of lettuce-onion mixture. People Staff, Peoplemag, 26 Jan. 2023 Those flavors all provide a perfect contrast and complement to the salty mortadella. Paul Stephen, San Antonio Express-News, 12 Oct. 2021 Salami could become ham or mortadella, and artichoke hearts could be swapped for roasted red peppers. Jessica Battilana, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 June 2021 Replace the entire panel of The View with these two and a block of mortadella. Brian Moylan, Vulture, 17 Mar. 2021 Nine of the ill people reported eating Italian-style meats, such as salami, mortadella and proscuitto, the CDC said. Brooke Baitinger, sun-sentinel.com, 23 Oct. 2020 Meanwhile, the Sprezzatura — aside from being the best name for a pizza in town — evokes the studied ease of its namesake, sheets of mellow mortadella touched with just a faint drizzle of pistachio pesto. Dominic Armato, azcentral, 7 June 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mortadella.' 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

Italian, from Latin murtatum sausage seasoned with myrtle berries, from murtus myrtle

First Known Use

1613, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of mortadella was in 1613

Dictionary Entries Near mortadella

Cite this Entry

“Mortadella.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mortadella. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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