English Explanatory Dictionary

tamale

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A Mexican dish of cornmeal dough shell filled with various ingredients (e.g. chopped beef, pork, sweet filling) then steamed in corn husks.
name
  1. A city in Ghana, the capital city of the Northern Region.

Pronunciation

tə-mä′lē /təˈmɑː.liː/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-tamale.wav /təˈmɑ.li/ /təˈmɒ.li/ /təˈmɐː.liː/ /təˈma.li/ /ʈaˈmaː.liː/

Word forms

tamale tamales

Etymology

Back-formation from the plural tamales, derived from Latin American Spanish tamales, plural of tamal, derived from Nahuatl tamalli (“wrapped”), derived from Proto-Uto-Aztecan *tïmaL-. Compare O'odham cemait (“tortilla”), Hopi tuma (“stone griddle for cooking corn flatbread”), Ute tʉ'ma- (“to roast under ashes”).

Synonyms

humita tamal

Related words

tamalera tamalero tamalito

Derived words

big tamale hot tamale tamale pie
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