Bible Encyclopedias
Omelette

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

Search for…

Enter query below:

or

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Prev Entry
Omdurman

Next Entry
Omen

Resource Toolbox

Print Article

sometimes Anglicized as "omelet," a French word of which the history is an example of the curious changes a word may undergo. The ultimate origin is Lat. lamella, diminutive of lamina, plate; this became in French lamelle, and a wrong division of la lamelle gave alamelle, alemelle, or alumelle; thence alemette, metathesized to amelette and aumelete, the form in which the word appears in the 15th and 16th centuries. The original meaning seems to be a pancake of a thin flat shape. Omelettes are made with eggs, beaten up lightly, with the addition of milk, flour, herbs, cheese, mushrooms, &c., according to the requirement, and cooked quickly in a buttered pan.