What does mealie mean?
Mealie is a Southern African term for maize, particularly maize eaten as food. In everyday South African usage, it can refer either to maize as a crop or to an individual ear of maize, and the plural mealies is commonly used in the context of a meal. Expressions such as mealie meal and mealie bread reflect the staple role of maize in South African cooking. The word also appears in green mealies, meaning young ears of maize eaten whole. Mealie is regional rather than formal and is not normally used in standard British or American English, where corn and maize are more familiar alternatives. Its regional character is useful because it reflects maize’s central place in Southern African food culture: it can name the crop, the grain, the ear, or maize-based food depending on context.
nounMaize, especially as food. In South African English, a mealie may also refer to an ear of maize.
- Maize, especially the kernels when prepared as food.
- An ear of maize.
"She served mealies with fresh tomato sauce."
"The mealies were still warm from the potjie."
"A young boy chewed a boiled mealie as he walked home from school."
The standard plural is mealies, used commonly for ears of maize or maize served as food.
"Fresh mealies and good weather make an ideal lunch."
In South African English, mealie is simply maize — a word that turns an everyday ear of corn into a piece of home cooking.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does mealie come from?
The word entered English from Afrikaans, whose form is mielie. The Afrikaans word is generally traced to a Malay source referring to millet, reflecting the linguistic connections that shaped the term in southern Africa before it became established in South African English.
How mealie is actually used
The term is informal and particularly associated with South African English. Outside Southern Africa it may sound regional or unfamiliar; in British English, maize is normally preferred for the plant and its grain.
Easily confused with mealie
In Southern African English, corn and mealie can both refer to maize, but mealie is the more regionally characteristic and commonly informal term.