mayo
UK[ˈmeɪəʊ]US[ˈmeɪoʊ]
n
A thick, creamy, cold sauce, often white or pale yellow, made from egg yolks, oil, and vinegar or lemon juice, used especially in salads and sandwiches.
Etymology
The term "mayo" is a 20th-century American English abbreviation of "mayonnaise". The origin of "mayonnaise" is debated, but the most plausible theory traces it to the French city of Port Mahon (Maó in Menorcan) on the island of Minorca. Following the Duc de Richelieu's capture of the city in 1756, a sauce named "mahonnaise" or "mayonnaise" (sauce of Mahon) was reportedly created to celebrate the victory. The clipped form "mayo" reflects a common linguistic trend of shortening longer, commonly used words, especially in informal and commercial contexts, stripping it of its original geographical reference while retaining its core semantic identity as a specific condiment.
Analysis
The word is a clipped form (shortening) of the full word "mayonnaise". It does not contain separable, meaningful morphemes in its current form.
Examples
Would you like mayo or mustard on your sandwich?
This potato salad recipe calls for a cup of mayo.
She spread a thin layer of mayo on the bread before adding the lettuce and tomato.