Meaning & use
goujon
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A thin strip of fish or chicken coated in crumbs or batter and fried.
Grammar: Usually plural on menus: chicken goujons.
Patterns
- goujons of something
- a plate of goujons
The children ordered chicken goujons with chips.
We shared a plate of fish goujons and tartar sauce.
She dipped a goujon into the sweet chili sauce.
nouncountablerare
A small freshwater fish, better known in English as a gudgeon.
Grammar: Rare, from French.
The cook told us the word goujon first meant a river fish.
French chefs once fried goujon whole.
An old book mentioned goujon in the streams.
Word forms
| plural | goujons |
|---|
Common combinations
- chicken goujons
- Chicken goujons are popular at kids' parties.
- fish goujons
- The pub serves fish goujons with peas.
- crispy goujons
- The crispy goujons arrived piping hot.
- goujons with dip
- We ordered goujons with a garlic dip.
- breaded goujons
- She baked breaded goujons in the oven.
Synonyms and how they differ
- strips
- Strips is a plain word that does not imply a coating, while goujons are always crumbed or battered.
- fingers
- Fish fingers are a similar British product, usually thicker and rectangular.
- nuggets
- Nuggets are small shaped pieces, not long thin strips.
- tenders
- Tenders are strips of chicken breast, especially in American English.
Word family
- gudgeon noun
- the small freshwater fish the word comes from
- goujonette noun
- a small goujon used in cooking
Commonly confused: goujon or gudgeon?
goujon vs gudgeon
A gudgeon is a fish, and also a metal pin in machinery. Goujon is the French form that gave the food its name.
Practice
A British menu offers chicken goujons. What would you probably get?
Choose one answer.
Goujons are strips coated in crumbs or batter and fried.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “goujon”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.