spaghetti

noun

spa·​ghet·​ti spə-ˈge-tē 

1

: pasta made in thin solid strings

2

: insulating tubing typically of varnished cloth or of plastic for covering bare wire or holding insulated wires together

spaghettilike

spə-ˈge-tē-ˌlīk 

adjective

Examples of spaghetti in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Menu favorites like vodka rigatoni appear alongside new dishes including a giant carbonara raviolo and lobster spaghetti fra diavolo. — Miami Herald, 13 Nov. 2026

The first challenge is to stand there and endure Eric’s incessant chattering about The Sopranos, spaghetti (which is the reward), and his fiancé the longest. — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2026

Fans of sweet and salty snacks can try out SkinnyPop Elf Maple Syrup Kettle Corn, which draws on Buddy the Elf‘s love for maple syrup — minus the spaghetti. — Sabienna Bowman, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2026

As a carbohydrate, squash—both acorn and spaghetti—affects blood sugar levels, but the effect depends on portion size, what else is in the meal, and your individual glucose response. — Amy Brownstein, Verywell Health, 2 Nov. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Italian, from plural of spaghetto, diminutive of spago cord, string, from Late Latin spacus

First Known Use

1874, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing spaghetti

• spaghetti squash
• spaghetti strap
• spaghetti western

Rhymes for spaghetti

• confetti
• libretti
• betty
• chetty
• jetty
• petit
• sweaty
• yeti
• spermaceti

Kids Definition

spaghetti

noun

spa·​ghet·​ti spə-ˈget-ē 

: a food made chiefly of a mixture of flour and water dried in the form of thin solid strings

Etymology

from Italian spaghetti "pasta made in long strings," from spaghetti, plural of spaghetto "little string," from spago "string"

Word Origin

The Italian word spago means "cord, string." The suffix -etto in Italian, like the suffix -ette in English, means "little one." Added together, spago and -etto become spaghetto, which means "little string." "Little string" describes very well the shape of a strand of spaghetti. The word spaghetti is actually the plural form of spaghetto.