Dessert
/dɪˈzɜːrt/noun
A sweet course eaten at the end of a meal.
Did you know?“Dessert” comes from the French desservir, meaning “to clear the table,” so the word originally described the moment the meal was *undone* before it became the sweet finale.
Etymological Timeline
Late Latin
Latin
dis- + servire
“to unserve, clear away, or remove what was served”
Old French
Old French
desservir
“to clear the table after a meal”
16th Century
French
dessert
“the clearing of the table; later, the food served after the main meal”
17th Century
English
dessert
“the sweet course served at the end of a meal”
Modern English
English
dessert
“the final sweet dish of a meal”