A menu named for its shape
A kebab menu is the familiar button made of three dots arranged vertically. The name comes from the dots’ resemblance to pieces of food lined up on a skewer. It belongs to the same playful naming family as the hamburger menu, the three horizontal lines commonly used to open navigation.
The food comparison makes the names easy to remember, but it also distinguishes the icons at a glance: hamburger lines usually suggest a navigation panel, while vertical dots often signal more options for the item or screen currently in view.
A compact sign for hidden choices
Three dots take up very little space, so designers can tuck secondary actions behind them instead of displaying every command beside a message, file, or toolbar. Tapping the icon reveals a menu; the dots themselves are a cue that more choices are available.
That compactness has a tradeoff: the symbol does not spell out what those choices are, and its meaning can vary across apps. The food-themed nickname helps people talk about the control, but the surrounding interface still has to make clear what kind of menu it opens.
