hamburger

noun

ham·​burg·​er ˈham-ˌbər-gər 

variants or hamburg

ˈham-ˌbərg 

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

Two Parker County business owners have bought the 1950s-style Malt Shop hamburger drive-in and will keep it open regular hours through a remodeling, David Hart posted Sunday night on Facebook. —Bud Kennedy, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 17 Feb. 2025

In her column this week, Jenn Harris crawls the San Gabriel Valley for her favorite versions of rou jia mo, a dish from the Shaanxi province in China often called a Chinese hamburger. —Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2025

Various foods — including gravy, Spam, chicken salad, salmon poke and a hamburger patty — were stored outside of the temperature range considered safe. —Camila Pedrosa, Sacramento Bee, 14 Feb. 2025

Some of his favorite foods include blueberries, avocados, bananas, hamburgers and shrimp. —Jordan Greene, People.com, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

German Hamburger of Hamburg, Germany

First Known Use

1884, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

hamburger

noun

ham·​burg·​er ˈham-ˌbər-gər 

variants or hamburg

-ˌbərg 

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.