mayo

mayo — noun

1. a thick, creamy sauce made by blending egg yolks with oil and either vinegar or

1.nounA2
Definition

a thick, creamy sauce made by blending egg yolks with oil and either vinegar or lemon juice; a short, informal way of saying mayonnaise, commonly used in everyday speech about food.

Example

Lien spread a thick layer of mayo on her turkey sandwich before adding the lettuce.

collocation: spread + mayo + on [bread/food]

The recipe calls for two tablespoons of mayo to make the coleslaw creamy.

pattern: [quantity] + of + mayo

Common collocations
  • spread mayo on
  • extra mayo
  • light mayo
  • low-fat mayo
  • with mayo
  • without mayo
  • a jar of mayo
  • tablespoon of mayo
Synonyms
  • mayonnaise

    the full, more formal equivalent of 'mayo'

  • aioli

    a garlic-flavored version of mayonnaise; often considered a different sauce in professional cooking

  • salad dressing

    a broader category; mayonnaise is one type of salad dressing

Grammar Patterns

uncountable — no plural form

often used without article when referring to the ingredient in general

Usage Note

Used in informal conversation and casual writing. In formal recipes or professional kitchens, the full word 'mayonnaise' is preferred.

Common Mistakes

The chef prepared a fine mayo from scratch for the banquet.
The chef prepared a fine mayonnaise from scratch for the banquet.
'mayo' is an informal shortening; use 'mayonnaise' in formal or professional contexts.
Please pass the mayonaise.
Please pass the mayonnaise.
'mayonnaise' has two 'n's and one 'i'; the common misspelling drops one 'n'.

2. a county on the west coast of Ireland, part of the province of Connacht, known f

2.noun
Definition

a county on the west coast of Ireland, part of the province of Connacht, known for its rugged coastline, the mountain Croagh Patrick, and the pilgrimage site of Knock Shrine.

Example

Jiwoo spent two weeks hiking through the mountains of County Mayo during her trip to Ireland.

collocation: County Mayo + [travel verb]

The coastal cliffs of Mayo attract surfers from all over Europe during the winter months.

Common collocations
  • County Mayo
  • in Mayo
  • from Mayo
  • the coast of Mayo
  • the mountains of Mayo

Grammar Patterns

usually preceded by 'County' — County Mayo

used with definite article when referring to the county as a region: 'the coast of Mayo'

Usage Note

When used as a place name, 'Mayo' almost always refers to County Mayo in Ireland. The full form 'County Mayo' is more common in formal writing and travel guides.

Common Mistakes

I went to Mayo to get medical treatment.
I went to the Mayo Clinic for medical treatment.
'Mayo' alone refers to the Irish county; the medical center is 'the Mayo Clinic'.
Idioms

Mayo River

idiom

a river in the Mexican state of Sonora that flows southwest for about 400 kilometers and empties into the Gulf of California, passing through desert and farmland.

The Mayo River provides water for irrigation across the farming valleys of southern Sonora.

Tamás fished for bass along the upper stretches of the Mayo River during his visit to Mexico.

County Mayo (Ireland)

idiom

a county in the northwest of Ireland on the Atlantic coast, with Castlebar as its administrative center, famous for Croagh Patrick, Achill Island, and traditional Irish music.

County Mayo is one of the largest counties in Ireland, covering over 5,400 square kilometers.

The traditional pubs of County Mayo are famous for live Irish folk music every weekend.

Mayo brothers

idiom

Charles Horace Mayo (1865–1939) and William James Mayo (1861–1939), two American surgeons who co-founded the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, one of the world's leading medical centers.

The Mayo brothers built their clinic after a devastating tornado destroyed much of Rochester in 1883.

Christopher wrote his medical history paper on how the Mayo brothers pioneered collaborative surgical practice.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While 'mayo' is an informal shortening of 'mayonnaise', the two are not interchangeable in all settings. 'Mayonnaise' is the standard term in formal cooking, ingredient labels, and restaurant menus; 'mayo' belongs in casual conversation and quick-service contexts. 'Aioli' was historically a garlic-and-olive-oil emulsion from Provence, but in modern English it often labels any garlic-flavored mayonnaiselike sauce. 'Salad dressing' is a broad category that includes mayonnaise, vinaigrettes, and creamy dressings — using 'salad dressing' when you mean 'mayo' can sound imprecise. For example: 'I asked for extra mayo on my deli sandwich' sounds natural, whereas a recipe book would say 'whisk the mayonnaise with lemon juice'.

mayonnaise ↗aiolisalad dressingspread ↗

Common collocations

Phrases

  • a dollop of mayo
  • a jar of mayo
  • extra mayo on the side

Prepositions

Etymology

FrenchEnglish

'Mayo' is a shortening of 'mayonnaise', which entered English in the mid-19th century from French. The French word 'mayonnaise' may come from 'mahonnaise', referring to the city of Mahón on the island of Menorca, where the sauce was supposedly created after the French captured the city in 1756. An alternative theory traces it to the Old French verb 'manier' ('to handle' or 'to stir'), describing the technique of emulsifying egg yolks with oil.