Standard Lemma guide

latke

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • /ˈlɑːt.ki/
  • /ˈlɑːt.kə/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A pancake fried in oil, usually made from potatoes and sometimes also onions, traditionally served on Hanukkah.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • Her favorite Chanukah memories were of eating latkes and sour cream while her mother gossiped with the aunts and cousins.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

made of grated potato and egg with a little flour

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: potato pancake

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: pancake, battercake, flannel cake, flannel-cake, flapcake, flapjack, griddlecake, hotcake, hot cake

History

Etymology

Borrowed from Yiddish לאַטקע (latke), from either Russian ла́тка (látka, “pastry, patch”) or Ukrainian оладка (oladka, “pancake, fritter”). In Polish łatka (“patch”) or placek, placki (“fritter, fritters”).

Across languages

Translations

3 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Hebrew: לביבה (levivah) — pancake fried in oil
  • Swedish: latke — pancake fried in oil
  • Yiddish: לאַטקע (latke) — pancake fried in oil