bruschetta

IPA/bruˈsketə/
IPA/bruˈsketə/

bruschetta — noun

1. an Italian dish of warm toasted bread with olive oil and a topping such as chopp

1.nounC2
Definition

an Italian dish of warm toasted bread with olive oil and a topping such as chopped tomatoes, cheese, or vegetables, usually eaten before the main part of a meal.

Example

At lunch, Priya shared tomato bruschetta with her sister by the window.

common collocation: tomato bruschetta

The waiter brought warm bruschetta before our pasta and green salad.

typical use: served before the main meal

Common collocations
  • tomato bruschetta
  • mushroom bruschetta
  • bruschetta with garlic
  • bruschetta with basil
  • serve bruschetta as a starter
Synonyms
  • crostini

    usually refers to smaller toasted bread pieces and is not limited to this Italian style

  • starter

    a broader menu word for any first course, not a specific bread dish

  • appetizer

    mainly American English; a broad category rather than this exact food

  • toast

    much more general and does not specifically suggest an Italian dish with toppings

Grammar Patterns

tomato bruschetta

bruschetta with + topping

serve bruschetta as a starter

Usage Note

Often appears on menus with the topping named first, as in tomato bruschetta or mushroom bruschetta. It is commonly served as a starter rather than as the main dish.

Common Mistakes

We ordered brushcetta before the pasta.
We ordered bruschetta before the pasta.
The English spelling keeps the Italian form with 'sch'.

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

'Bruschetta' names a particular Italian dish: toasted bread with oil and toppings such as tomatoes or cheese. 'Crostini' is close, but it usually suggests smaller pieces of toasted bread and can have many kinds of toppings. 'Starter' and 'appetizer' are broader words for any food served before the main course, so they tell you the meal position, not the exact dish. 'Toast' is much wider and may mean simple browned bread for breakfast or snacks. You can order bruschetta as a starter, but you would not usually call every piece of toast bruschetta. For example, a cafe may serve mushroom bruschetta first, while a child may eat plain toast at home.

bruschetta ↗crostini ↗starter ↗appetizer ↗toast ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • tomato bruschetta
  • mushroom bruschetta
  • cheese bruschetta
  • bruschetta topping

Phrases

  • serve bruschetta
  • order bruschetta
  • make bruschetta
  • eat bruschetta as a starter

Prepositions

  • bruschetta with
  • bruschetta as

Etymology

ItalianEnglish

Bruschetta is a borrowing from Italian. English kept the Italian name for this toasted bread dish when it became familiar outside Italy, and the word still strongly suggests Italian food and serving style.