Biscotti is Italian for "biscuits" or "cookies". In North America, the word has been taken to refer to a specific type of biscuits. The word "biscotti" (pronounced /bɪˈskɒti/, Italian pronunciation: [bisˈkɔtti]) in Italian is the plural form of biscotto, which applies to any type of biscuit (cookie), and originates from the medieval Latin word biscoctus, meaning "twice-cooked/baked": it defined biscuits baked twice in the oven, so they could be stored for long periods of time, which was particularly useful during journeys and wars.

Pliny boasted that they would be edible for centuries. Biscotti were a staple of the diet of the Roman Legions. Through Middle French, the word was imported into the English language as "biscuit".

Biscotto is derived from the word "bis" which in Italian means twice and "cotto" meaning cooked. In North America, the Italian term "biscotti" has been taken to refer to a specific type of biscuits, derived from Tuscan cantucci (singular cantuccio), a type of hard almond-flavoured biscuits traditionally served with vin santo, probably originating from the town of Prato and therefore still known as "biscotti di Prato".

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