Meaning & use
oregano
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
A leafy herb with a warm, slightly bitter flavor, used dried or fresh in Italian, Greek and Mexican cooking.
Grammar: Uncountable: add some oregano, not an oregano.
Patterns
- a pinch of oregano
- sprinkle oregano on something
Sprinkle a little oregano over the pizza before baking.
She grows oregano in a pot on the kitchen windowsill.
Dried oregano keeps its flavor for months in a sealed jar.
Common combinations
- dried oregano
- Dried oregano works well in tomato sauce.
- fresh oregano
- Fresh oregano is wonderful on grilled lamb.
- a pinch of oregano
- Add a pinch of oregano to the dressing.
- sprinkle oregano
- Sprinkle oregano on the feta before serving.
- oregano oil
- Some people use oregano oil as a natural remedy.
Synonyms and how they differ
- marjoram
- It is a sweeter, milder relative, so it works better in delicate dishes than oregano.
- thyme
- Thyme is a different herb with smaller leaves and a gentler, lemony taste, though it is often paired with oregano.
- wild marjoram
- This is another name for oregano itself and is used mainly in gardening and botany.
Word family
- origanum noun
- the plant genus that includes oregano
- herb noun
- a leafy plant used to flavor food
Commonly confused: oregano or marjoram?
oregano vs marjoram
Marjoram looks similar but tastes sweeter and softer; oregano is stronger and more peppery.
Practice
The pizza chef finished the sauce with a pinch of ____, a strong dried herb common in Italian cooking.
Choose one answer.
Oregano is the leafy herb used in Italian cooking. Cinnamon and nutmeg are sweet spices, and paprika is a ground pepper, so they do not match the description.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “oregano”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.