hamburger
noun
ham·burg·er
ˈham-ˌbər-gər 
variants
or hamburg
1
a
: ground beef
b
: a patty of ground beef
2
: a sandwich consisting of a patty of hamburger in a split typically round bun
Examples of hamburger in a Sentence
They served hot dogs and hamburgers at the cookout.
Add the cooked hamburger to the sauce.
Recent Examples on the Web
The burger giant saw customer visits weaken following an E.coli outbreak that started on October 22 and forced McDonald's to temporarily suspend sales of its Quarter Pounder hamburgers in a fifth of its 14,000 U.S. restaurants.
—
Savyata Mishra, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
His diet included between 6 lbs and 9 lbs of cheese, sticks of butter, and daily hamburgers that had additional fat incorporated into them.
—Ars Technica, 22 Jan. 2025
The hamburger bun croutons for the ultimate finishing touch.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 8 Jan. 2025
On Christmas Eve, Combs will be served a baked chicken patty sandwich with lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise on a hamburger bun, or a chickpea burger accompanied by steamed rice, pinto beans and fruit with a beverage.
—Danielle Bacher, People.com, 18 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for hamburger 
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Savyata Mishra, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2025
His diet included between 6 lbs and 9 lbs of cheese, sticks of butter, and daily hamburgers that had additional fat incorporated into them.
—Ars Technica, 22 Jan. 2025
The hamburger bun croutons for the ultimate finishing touch.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 8 Jan. 2025
On Christmas Eve, Combs will be served a baked chicken patty sandwich with lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise on a hamburger bun, or a chickpea burger accompanied by steamed rice, pinto beans and fruit with a beverage.
—Danielle Bacher, People.com, 18 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for hamburger
Dictionary Entries Near hamburger
Cite this Entry
“Hamburger.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hamburger. Accessed 19 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hamburger
noun
ham·burg·er
ˈham-ˌbər-gər
variants
or hamburg
1
a
: ground beef
b
: a cooked patty of ground beef
2
: a sandwich consisting of a patty of hamburger in a split round bun
Etymology
German Hamburger (adjective) "of Hamburg," city in Germany
Word Origin
It may seem odd that there isn't any ham in a hamburger. The origins of the word hamburger, however, have nothing to do with a type of meat. The word really comes from the name of the German city Hamburg. Hamburger, when capitalized, means "of Hamburg." Cakes of ground beef, often served raw, were a popular food in northern Germany in the 19th century, and so they became known in English as Hamburger steaks. The name was later shortened to hamburger. Most people no longer associate the word hamburger with the city of Hamburg, since the hamburger is now usually thought of as an American food.
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