What does scampi mean?
Scampi denotes shrimp or prawns, especially the popular restaurant preparation in which shellfish are cooked with garlic, butter, wine, and often herbs before being served with pasta. The word was borrowed from Italian as a plural, unlike the usual English pattern of borrowing a singular noun and then adding an English plural ending. Consequently, standard grammatical agreement generally treats it as plural: "the scampi were delicious." In menus and everyday restaurant language, it is also frequently treated as a singular name for the dish, making forms such as "the scampi was excellent" common and readily understood. Scampi is especially associated with Italian-American cuisine and garlic shrimp preparations, although the term is used in both British and American English. British usage more often includes the singular scampo alongside the plural scampi.
noun, pluralScampi are shrimp or prawns, especially when served as a dish with garlic, butter, wine, and pasta. The plural form is commonly used for the preparation as well as for the shellfish themselves.
- Shrimp or prawns, particularly when prepared as a garlic-and-butter dish.
- A pasta dish made with shrimp or prawns in a seasoned sauce.
"We ordered scampi linguine with extra lemon and parsley."
"The scampi arrived sizzling in a garlic and butter sauce."
"For a simple dinner, she served chilled scampi with lemon and cucumber."
The standard form is already plural and usually takes a plural verb, although singular agreement is common in restaurant and menu usage.
"The scampi were served with lemon and garlic."
Scampi is already plural: a small linguistic wink inherited straight from Italian.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does scampi come from?
Scampi was borrowed from Italian, where it is the plural of scampo, meaning a shrimp or prawn. English retained the borrowed plural form rather than replacing it with the regular English ending -s. Related Italian forms include the diminutive scampetto and the more specific scampiolino, both meaning a small shrimp.
How scampi is actually used
In traditional grammatical agreement, scampi takes a plural verb because it was borrowed as a plural form. In restaurant and menu usage, however, it commonly functions as a singular name for the dish, as in "the scampi was excellent." British speakers also commonly encounter the singular form scampo.
Easily confused with scampi
Scampo is the Italian singular, while scampi is the Italian plural that became the established English form.