tortilla

noun

tor·​ti·​lla tȯr-ˈtē-yə 

: a thin round of unleavened cornmeal or wheat flour bread usually eaten hot with a topping or filling (as of ground meat or cheese)

Examples of tortilla in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Key Facts The Snack Wrap, which features a chicken tender, lettuce, cheese and ranch dressing in a small flour tortilla, returned to McDonald’s franchises nationwide Thursday, nearly a decade after leaving the nationwide menu in 2016. —Derek Saul, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025

Place the beef patties on the hot pan, immediately top with the tortillas and press down with a large spatula, grill press or bottom of a saucepan until the burger is very thin and almost the size of the tortilla. —Robin Miller, AZCentral.com, 10 July 2025

The Crispy Chicken Burritos and Tacos feature the same tortilla coating used on the brand’s Crispy Chicken Nuggets. —Sabrina Weiss, People.com, 9 July 2025

Bonus points for great flour tortillas and guacamole that pops with jalapeño and lime. —Matthew Odam, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from American Spanish (Mexico, Central America, parts of the Caribbean and South America), from Spanish, diminutive of torta "cake, pastry," going back to Late Latin tōrta "round loaf of bread" — more at tart entry 2

First Known Use

1648, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tortilla

• tortilla chip

Rhymes for tortilla

• aliya
• aliyah
• althea
• apnoea
• coffea
• dyspnea
• dyspnoea
• hosea
• idea
• kshatriya
• maria
• medea

Kids Definition

tortilla

noun

tor·​ti·​lla tȯr-ˈtē-(y)ə 

: a thin round of unleavened cornmeal or wheat flour bread

Etymology

American Spanish, literally "little cake," from Spanish torta "cake"