From Middle English dissh, disch, from Old English disċ (“plate; bowl; dish”), from Proto-West Germanic *disk (“table; dish”) (whence also Proto-Slavic *dъska, whence Bulgarian дъска́ (dǎská), Polish deska, Russian доска́ (doská)), Russian чан (čan)) from Latin discus. Doublet of dais, desk, disc, discus, disk, and diskos. Cognates Cognate with Scots disch (“dish; plate”), Dutch dis (“table”), German Low German Disk, Disch (“table”), German Tisch (“table”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish disk (“dish; counter”), Icelandic diskur (“dish; plate”), Finnish tiski (“desk, counter; dish”). Compare the identical meaning expansion (vessel for food, then also content of such a vessel, then also specific type of food): Bulgarian блю́до (bljúdo), Russian блю́до (bljúdo). For the roundness aspect, compare Polish rondel (“pan, saucepan”) (< Latin rotundus (whence also English round)), Slovene krožnik < krog. Also compare typologically Proto-Slavic *misъka << Latin mēnsa; Ancient Greek πίναξ (pínax) (several meanings).
Let's carve him a dish fit for the gods1599 (first performance), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:
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In plural Tableware (including cutlery, etc, as well as crockery) that is to be or is being washed after being used to prepare, serve and eat a meal.
Dated, Informal Something that fits someone's tastes, interests, or abilities.
Going to the club is not my dish.
Literacy is not every man’s dish. A teacher trying to persuade Arab men in North Africa to let their wives learn to read so that they can write letters was pointedly asked by one husband: “To whom?”1965 November 19, “Illiteracy: The Uncomprehending 40%”, in Time, volume 86, number 21, page 67:
Have you seen the new apothecary? I think her name is Sadie. What a dish!1993, Westwood Studios, Lands of Lore: The Throne of Chaos, Virgin Games:
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Dated The state of being concave, like a dish, or the degree of such concavity.
the dish of a wheel
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A hollow place, as in a field.
As I topped the ridge I missed my first shot at a sharptail that flushed from a grassy dish.1980, Nebraskaland:
He and Stratemeier raced across the flats and dropped into the canyon, climbed swiftly through it and came out at the topside trail , which went straight south through the timber until it dropped into a small grassy dish surrounded by rock peaks.1987 02, Brian Garfield, The Arizonans, Bantam, →ISBN:
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Daylight revealed that the so-called summit was near the edge of a shallow, stony dish, which terminated abruptly in steep slopes, and actually offered poor fields of fire.2006 September 14, Richard Holmes, Martin Marix Evans, A Guide to Battles: Decisive Conflicts in History, OUP Oxford, →ISBN:
He said, "I don't like your chances at the dish [home plate] tonight."2008, Paul Byrd, Free Byrd: The Power of a Liberated Life, page 4:
At the plate, Graham pounded the dish three times, just like Bubbles did whenever he was up, […]2009, Loren Long, Phil Bildner, Magic in the Outfield, page 40:
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Also, if you end up getting to the baseball, your pitcher needs to be covering home plate, which pitchers occasionally forget to do. However, if the ball stays near the dish and you have a pitcher on the mound who isn't a space-case, you've got a good shot to get the runner out.2014, Conor Kelley, The Catcher's Handbook, page 87:
We've been a very lucky community: We've had GCN to collect our deep dish and write it up as political discourse. GCN is not just another clipboard of polite press releases. GCN is the sticky questions, the sweet moments, and the dirty stories that make up our lives.1989 December 24, Abe Rybeck, “Liberation Without Permission, Pleasure Without Apology”, in Gay Community News, volume 17, number 24, page 5:
From Middle English dissh, disch, from Old English disċ (“plate; bowl; dish”), from Proto-West Germanic *disk (“table; dish”) (whence also Proto-Slavic *dъska, whence Bulgarian дъска́ (dǎská), Polish deska, Russian доска́ (doská)), Russian чан (čan)) from Latin discus. Doublet of dais, desk, disc, discus, disk, and diskos. Cognates Cognate with Scots disch (“dish; plate”), Dutch dis (“table”), German Low German Disk, Disch (“table”), German Tisch (“table”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, and Swedish disk (“dish; counter”), Icelandic diskur (“dish; plate”), Finnish tiski (“desk, counter; dish”). Compare the identical meaning expansion (vessel for food, then also content of such a vessel, then also specific type of food): Bulgarian блю́до (bljúdo), Russian блю́до (bljúdo). For the roundness aspect, compare Polish rondel (“pan, saucepan”) (< Latin rotundus (whence also English round)), Slovene krožnik < krog. Also compare typologically Proto-Slavic *misъka << Latin mēnsa; Ancient Greek πίναξ (pínax) (several meanings).
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To put in a dish or dishes; serve, usually food.
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Informal, Slang To gossip; to relay information about the personal situation of another.
In the car with you I heard Joe's voice ― complaining about how invisible black people still are to whites; praising artists we admire; dishing someone's bad taste; planning future adventures; […]1989 February 5, Jewelle Gomez, “Journey”, in Gay Community News, volume 16, number 29, page 9:
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To make concave, or depress in the middle, like a dish.
to dish a wheel by inclining the spokes
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Archaic, Slang To frustrate; to beat; to outwit or defeat.
Have the Tories "dished the Whigs"?1867, The British Controversialist and Literary Magazine, page 460: