hors d'oeuvres

Meaning

1. 1nounusually plural

   Small bites of food passed around or set out to nibble on before the main part of a meal begins.

   Grammar: The spelling is the same in singular and plural; the plural is pronounced with a final z sound: the hors d'oeuvres were gone quickly.

   Patterns

   • serve hors d'oeuvres
   • hors d'oeuvres before something

   Waiters circulated with trays of hors d'oeuvres while the guests chatted.

   We filled up on hors d'oeuvres and hardly touched the dinner.

   She prepared three cold hors d'oeuvres for the engagement party.

Word forms

Common combinations

serve hors d'oeuvres

The hotel will serve hors d'oeuvres at the reception.

cold hors d'oeuvres

Cold hors d'oeuvres such as smoked salmon canapes were laid out first.

passed hors d'oeuvres

Passed hors d'oeuvres kept the crowd happy during the speeches.

hors d'oeuvres platter

He ordered an hors d'oeuvres platter for the office party.

a selection of hors d'oeuvres

The caterer offered a selection of hors d'oeuvres for the cocktail hour.

Synonyms and how they differ

appetizer

Appetizer is the usual American word and can also mean a small first course eaten seated, whereas hors d'oeuvres are typically finger food at a standing event.

starter

Starter is the everyday British word for the first course at a sit-down meal, so it sounds less like party nibbles than hors d'oeuvres.

canapé

A canapé is one specific kind of hors d'oeuvre, a small bite on a base such as bread or a cracker, so it is narrower in meaning.

Opposites

Word family

hors d'oeuvre noun

the rarely used singular for one item

appetizer noun

the plain English equivalent

canapé noun

a small topped bite often served as one

Commonly confused: hors d'oeuvres or entrée? hors d'oeuvres or horde?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “hors d'oeuvres”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Explore more words