pilaf

noun

pi·​laf pi-ˈläf 

-ˈlȯf;

ˈpē-ˌläf,

-ˌlȯf 

variants or less commonly pilaff

pi-ˈläf 

-ˈlȯf;

ˈpē-ˌläf,

-ˌlȯf

or pilau

pi-ˈlō  -ˈlȯ 

ˈpē-(ˌ)lō,

-ˌlȯ;

 Southern often  ˈpər-(ˌ)lü,

-(ˌ)lō

or pilaw

pi-ˈlō 

-ˈlȯ,

ˈpē-(ˌ)lō,

-ˌlȯ;

 Southern often  ˈpər-(ˌ)lü,

-(ˌ)lō

: a dish made of seasoned rice and often meat

Examples of pilaf in a Sentence

a serving of rice pilaf

Recent Examples on the Web

His attempts have been either soupy or burnt, acting on the instinct to cook it like a rice pilaf of sorts, using a brothy base of savory aromatics. —Bon Appétit, 19 Mar. 2025

Pair with beef Bourgogne or with a rice and soy pilaf or even with a simple dessert chunk of fudge. —Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025

Pair with roasted pig or with a rice pilaf and shiitake mushrooms. —Tom Mullen, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2025

Pair, as Colu suggests, with rice pilaf to catch all those sweet and salty juices. —Mia Leimkuhler, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Turkish & Persian; Turkish pilav, from Persian pilāv

First Known Use

1609, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pilaf

• ashraf
• checkoff
• cutoff
• falloff
• handoff
• kickoff
• layoff
• liftoff
• markoff
• markov
• payoff
• playoff

Kids Definition

pilaf

noun

pi·​laf

variants also pilaff

pi-ˈläf  ˈpē-ˌläf 

or pilau

pi-ˈlō 

-ˈlȯ,

ˈpē-;

 Southern often  ˈpər-lü,

-lō

: a dish made of seasoned rice and often meat