What does delicatessen mean?
Word: Delicatessen
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Delicatessen means a specialist shop offering foods that are ready to eat, often imported or unusual ones.
How do you spell delicatessen?
Syllables: del - i - ca - tes - sen
Tricky part: The final syllables cause the trouble. One s looks enough to most pupils, and the last vowel is so faint that many write an a there.
Watch out for: delicatesen, delicatessan
Memory tip: Picture two snakes guarding the cheese counter: that pair of hissing letters comes just before the end.
Delicatessen in a sentence
Example 1: We picked up olives and rye bread from the delicatessen near Bandra station.
Example 2: The delicatessen on our street sells twenty kinds of cheese.
Example 3: My aunt opened a small delicatessen after learning to make Italian sauces.
Fun Fact
It reached English from German or Dutch, where it was a plural meaning fine foods, and it was later shortened to deli.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Choose the letters that complete the word:
delic_t_ssen
a) a, e
b) i, e
c) e, e
d) a, i
Show answer
a) a, e. It grows out of delicate, and the syllable after that is said like tess.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
deliccatessen
a) t
b) l
c) s
d) c
Show answer
d) c. The k sound after the i needs only one letter.
Mingle-Mangle
The sentence contains a jumbled word. Choose the word it hides:
We stopped at the new elecneiatsds on Hill Road for smoked cheese and warm bread.
a) dispensary
b) delicatessen
c) delegation
d) delicacy
Show answer
b) delicatessen. Only one option has twelve letters.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word:
1. pastrey 2. mayonaise 3. delicatessen 4. restaraunt
a) a baked dough used for making pies and tarts
b) a counter-style shop for salads and sliced meats
c) a thick, creamy sauce made with eggs and oil
d) a place where cooked meals are served at tables
Show answer
b) a counter-style shop for salads and sliced meats. Restaurant has au before the r, mayonnaise needs two n's, and pastry has no e.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Your mother sends you to a delicatessen. What is she most likely to want?
a) a pair of school shoes
b) pickled gherkins and soft cheese
c) two reams of printer paper
d) a box of nails and screws
Show answer
b) pickled gherkins and soft cheese
2. What would a delicatessen need most?
a) a chilled display counter
b) a fitting room mirror
c) a tall book trolley
d) a dry cleaning machine
Show answer
a) a chilled display counter
