taco
taco Lexical Profile
taco Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A traditional Mexican dish consisting of a small, hand-sized corn or wheat tortilla topped with a filling, which is then folded or rolled to be eaten by hand.
"We stopped at the street cart to grab a couple of carne asada tacos for lunch."
North American A popular adaptation of the Mexican dish, typically featuring a crisp, U-shaped, fried corn shell filled with seasoned ground beef, lettuce, cheese, and salsa.
"The school cafeteria served hard-shell tacos loaded with mild salsa and sour cream every Tuesday."
• Rhymes for taco
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Mexican Spanish 'taco' (light lunch), originally meaning a plug, wad, or ramrod. The culinary usage is believed to have originated among 18th-century Mexican silver miners, who used small paper-wrapped explosive 'tacos' that resembled the folded food.