ragù

UK/ˈɹæ.ɡuː/UK/ɹæˈɡuː/US/ɹæˈɡu/US/ɹɑˈɡu/

noun

An Italian pasta sauce containing ground meat cooked with sautéed vegetables in tomato sauce or some other kind of liquid.

OriginItalian ragù ← French ragoût ← Middle French ragoûter →
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Meanings

nounragù (countable and uncountable, plural ragùs)

plural ragùs · alternative ragu

  1. countableuncountableAn Italian pasta sauce containing ground meat cooked with sautéed vegetables in tomato sauce or some other kind of liquid.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ǵews-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ǵéwstus
  3. Proto-Italic*gustus
  4. Latingustus
  5. Middle Frenchgoût
  6. Middle Frenchragoûter
  7. Frenchragoût
  8. Italianragù
  9. Englishragù

Unadapted borrowing from Italian ragù, from French ragoût, from Middle French ragoûter (“to awaken the appetite”), from goût (“taste”), from Latin gustus. Doublet of ragout.

More words from Italian, French, Middle French

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Rhymes with ragù

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All rhymes →
Cite this entry
APA

ragù. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rag%C3%B9

MLA

“ragù.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rag%C3%B9. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ragù,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/rag%C3%B9.

Source: ragù on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.