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Visual pasta shape library

See the shape.
Understand the sauce.

Clear photographs make pasta geometry practical: compare length, width, ridges, hollow centres, cups and ribbons before choosing what to cook.

Not sure what is in front of you?

Use controlled visible traits to narrow the shape library, or start with a sauce and see context-aware fits.

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Dry conchiglie pasta showing its ridged shell-shaped cups on pale stone01 · Short · shell

Conchiglie

Conchiglie looks like a small seashell: a curved, hollow cup with a flared opening and ridges across the outside.

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Large smooth dry paccheri pasta tubes with wide hollow centres on pale stone02 · Large · smooth tube

Paccheri

Paccheri is an exceptionally wide, short tube with straight-cut ends. A single piece is dramatically larger than rigatoni and may be smooth or lightly ridged.

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Dry Ligurian trofie pasta showing short tapered hand-rolled twists on pale stone03 · Short · twisted

Trofie

Trofie is a short, solid hand-rolled twist that tapers at both ends. It looks irregular and slender rather than like a uniform corkscrew.

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Tiny dry ditalini pasta tubes with square-cut hollow ends on pale stone04 · Tiny · tube

Ditalini

Ditalini consists of tiny, smooth tubes cut roughly as long as they are wide—little pasta thimbles small enough to eat with a spoon.

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Dry penne rigate pasta tubes with diagonal quill-shaped ends and ridges on pale stone05 · Short · ridged tube

Penne

Penne is a medium, narrow tube cut diagonally at both ends, creating pointed quill-like tips. Penne rigate is ridged; penne lisce is smooth.

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Thick solid Venetian bigoli strands showing their rough round profile on pale stone06 · Long · thick strand

Bigoli

Bigoli looks like unusually thick, rough spaghetti. The strands are solid and round, with a little irregularity rather than a perfectly polished surface.

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Uncooked ridged potato gnocchi dumplings showing their solid pillow shape on pale stone07 · Dumpling · potato

Gnocchi

Potato gnocchi are small solid oval pillows with shallow ridges and often a slight underside hollow. They have no tube, sheet or pasta wrapper.

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Dry Gramigna pasta showing tiny hollow hooked tubes and open ends on pale stone08 · Short · curved tube

Gramigna

Gramigna resembles short hollow grass stems bent into hooks, loose curls and small squiggles. Its open tube ends distinguish it from solid spirals.

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Dry elbow macaroni showing intact curved hollow tubes and round open ends on pale stone09 · Short · elbow tube

Macaroni

Everyday macaroni is a small tube bent into a clean elbow, with a hollow centre visible at both ends. Packets may be smooth or finely ridged.

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Dry Sardinian malloreddus showing tiny ridged shells and lengthwise cavities on pale stone10 · Short · ridged shell

Malloreddus

Malloreddus is a tiny elongated shell with tight crosswise ridges and a shallow open cavity along its underside.

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Fresh hand-rolled Tuscan pici showing thick irregular solid strands on pale stone11 · Long · hand-rolled

Pici

Pici is a thick, solid hand-rolled strand. It is roundish but deliberately less uniform than extruded spaghetti, with gentle variations along its length.

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Dry buckwheat pizzoccheri showing short flat grey-brown speckled ribbons on pale stone12 · Short · buckwheat ribbon

Pizzoccheri

Pizzoccheri is a short, flat ribbon with straight knife-cut ends. Buckwheat gives the pieces a distinctive grey-brown, speckled appearance.

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Fresh square ravioli showing centred filling mounds and fluted sealed borders on pale stone13 · Filled · square parcel

Ravioli

Ravioli is a sealed filled parcel, commonly square or round, with a raised centre and a flat border where two thin sheets meet.

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Fresh Roman tonnarelli strands showing their thick square cross-section and rough faces on pale stone14 · Long · square strand

Tonnarelli

Tonnarelli is a long, thick strand with four flat faces and a square cross-section. Clean-cut ends make the difference from round spaghetti obvious.

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Fresh small tortellini showing compact filled rings, joined corners and raised triangular flaps on pale stone15 · Filled · small ring

Tortellini

Tortellini is a tiny filled ring folded from a square: the filled triangle wraps around a finger, its corners join, and a small flap rises above the central opening.

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Long dry smooth ziti tubes with straight open ends and traditionally snapped sections on pale stone16 · Long · smooth tube

Ziti

Ziti is a long, straight, smooth hollow tube with square-cut ends. It is wider than bucatini and lacks penne's diagonal points.

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Long dry spaghetti strands showing their slim round solid shape on pale stone17 · Long · round

Spaghetti

Spaghetti is a long, slim, solid strand with a circular cross-section. It is round rather than flat and usually about 2 mm thick.

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Dry rigatoni pasta tubes with square-cut ends and prominent ridges on pale stone18 · Short · ridged tube

Rigatoni

Rigatoni is a broad, straight tube with square-cut ends and prominent lengthwise ridges. It is wider and more substantial than penne.

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Dry fusilli pasta showing its short corkscrew spirals on pale stone19 · Short · spiral

Fusilli

Fusilli is a short, solid corkscrew. Its continuous spiral creates deep grooves from end to end.

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Dry farfalle pasta showing crimped wings and thick pinched centres on pale stone20 · Short · pinched

Farfalle

Farfalle is a small rectangle pinched in the middle to form two crimped wings, resembling a bow tie or butterfly.

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Long dry bucatini strands showing the narrow hollow centre through each thick tube21 · Long · hollow

Bucatini

Bucatini looks like thick spaghetti but has a narrow hole running through every strand. The hollow cross-section is easiest to see at a clean-cut end.

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Dry orecchiette pasta showing small rough ear-shaped cups and thick rims on pale stone22 · Small · cupped

Orecchiette

Orecchiette looks like a collection of little ears: shallow, rough cups with a thinner centre and a thicker rounded rim.

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Long dry linguine strands showing their narrow flat ribbon shape on pale stone23 · Long · flat

Linguine

Linguine is a long, narrow, solid ribbon. It is flatter and a little wider than spaghetti but far narrower than fettuccine.

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Dry tagliatelle nests showing flat medium-width egg pasta ribbons on pale stone24 · Long · egg ribbon

Tagliatelle

Tagliatelle is a long, flat egg-pasta ribbon traditionally about 6–8 mm wide, commonly sold fresh in loose strands or dried in nests.

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Long dry fettuccine showing its flat medium-width ribbon shape on pale stone25 · Long · flat ribbon

Fettuccine

Fettuccine is a long, flat ribbon of medium width—broader than linguine and much narrower than pappardelle.

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Dry pappardelle showing very broad flat egg pasta ribbons folded on pale stone26 · Extra-wide ribbon

Pappardelle

Pappardelle is an extra-wide, flat ribbon, often 2–3 cm across. Its width is the defining clue: it looks closer to a narrow strip of pasta sheet than to spaghetti.

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Broad rectangular dry lasagne pasta sheets with straight edges on pale stone27 · Wide · layered sheet

Lasagne

Lasagne is a broad rectangular pasta sheet, sold flat or with ruffled edges. Unlike ribbons, the sheet is designed to cover a baking dish in overlapping layers.

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