street food

noun

plural street foods
: prepared food of a kind that is typically sold to customers on a street or sidewalk and that is often designed to be carried and eaten while walking
Pizza is quintessentially a street food: a quick lunch or a quick snack often eaten standing up or on the go.Don Lesser
Traditionally eaten as street food, empanadas are ideal for snacking on the go but are just as satisfying to sit down to for a simple dinner.Melissa Roberts and Maggie Ruggiero
Satays, which are skewered and grilled morsels of beef, fish, chicken, pork, or vegetables, are street food in Southeast Asia, devoured day and night with gusto.Karen MacNeil

Examples of street food in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And lively neighborhoods like Myeongdong and Hongdae are hot spots for shopping, local street food, K-pop culture, and nightlife. Taryn White, Travel + Leisure, 9 Feb. 2026 Across the street from Hamburguesas El Gordo, a Mexican street food spot on Cedar Avenue in Minneapolis, a 29-year-old arborist stood on a corner Wednesday morning wearing a black hooded jacket under a reflective vest and an orange whistle on a string around his neck. Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 8 Feb. 2026 Yuba City is looking to crack down on unpermitted street vendors after seeing an uptick in unpermitted street food vendors over the past few years. Kayla Moeller, CBS News, 7 Feb. 2026 In the evenings on Thursdays through Sundays there will be street food for sale. Heather McRea, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for street food

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of street food was in 1860

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Street food.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/street%20food. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.

Kids Definition

street food

noun
: prepared food of a kind that is typically sold to customers on a street or sidewalk and that is often designed to be carried and eaten while walking
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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