Definition of PESTO

pesto

Plural: pestos

Noun

  • A green Italian sauce made from basil, garlic, pine nuts, and cheese.
  • a sauce typically served with pasta; contains crushed basil leaves and garlic and pine nuts and Parmesan cheese in olive oil
  • A sauce, especially for pasta, originating from the Genoa region in Italy, made from basil, garlic, pine nuts, olive oil and cheese (usually pecorino).

Examples

  • He played PESTO, hoping its short length wouldn’t leave too many openings for his Words With Friends opponent.

Origin / Etymology

Appears 1850 in Cottage economy, attributed to William Cobbett (but not found in any editions published during his life). From Italian pesto, from Latin pistus (“crushed, pounded”), from Latin pīnsō (“to pound, beat, crush”). Cognate to pestle.

Scrabble Score: 7

pesto: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Word
pesto: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
pesto: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 8

pesto: valid Words With Friends Word