A bread roll is a piece of bread, usually small and round and is commonly considered a side dish. Bread rolls are often used in the same way as sandwiches are—cut transversely, with fillings placed between the two halves.

There are many names for bread rolls, especially in local dialects of British English. Originally, these originated with bakers terms for different forms of bread roll depending on how the dough was made and how the roll was cooked. However, over time, most people have come to use one name to refer to all similar products regardless of whether it is technically correct or not.

Bread rolls are common in Europe, especially in Germany, in Italy (called panino or panini) and in Austria. They are equally common in both Australia and New Zealand, and very common in Canada. The German name for rolls is Brötchen (Rhineland and Northern Germany resp. high German), which is the diminutive of "Brot" (bread), Rundstück (in Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein),Semmel (Bavaria, most parts of Saxony and Austria, from Latin similia wheat flour, originally from Assyrian samidu white flour), zsemle in Hungary, Schrippe (in Berlin and parts of Brandenburg), or Weck (especially in Baden-Württemberg, Franconia and Saarland). In Germany and Austria, there is a large variety of bread rolls, ranging from white rolls made with wheat flour, to dark rolls containing mostly rye flour. Many variants include spices, such as coriander and cumin, nuts, or seeds, such as sesame seeds, poppy seed or sunflower seeds.
An Italian form is a small loaf of ciabatta which can be used to make a panino (or panini). In Denmark and Norway, rolls are called rundstykker (literally "round pieces") and are comfort food eaten with butter for special weekend breakfasts; some like to put cheese, jam or salami on the rundstykker.