1. A highly seasoned stew made of several kinds of fish and shellfish.
2. A combination of various different, often incongruous elements: a bouillabaisse of special interests.

[French, from Provençal bouiabaisso : boui, imperative of bouie, to boil (from Latin bullīre , from bulla, bubble) + abaisso, imperative of abeissa, to lower (from Vulgar Latin *abbassiāre : Latin ad-, ad- + Medieval Latin bassus, low).]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.