| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
| "al dente" |
| SYLLABICATION: | al den·te |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  l
d n t ,
äl dnt |
| ADJECTIVE: | Cooked enough to be firm but not soft: pasta al dente. |
| ETYMOLOGY: | Italian : al, to the + dente, tooth. |
| OTHER FORMS: | al dente
—ADVERB |