diff --git a/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/index.tsx b/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/index.tsx
index c21cfa456eb3c..805bcd0661179 100644
--- a/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/index.tsx
+++ b/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/index.tsx
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import { menu } from '@wordpress/icons';
 import Button from '../button';
 import Dropdown from '../dropdown';
 import { NavigableMenu } from '../navigable-container';
-import type { Controls, DropdownMenuProps, NormalizedControls } from './types';
+import type { DropdownMenuProps, DropdownOption } from './types';
 
 function mergeProps<
 	T extends { className?: string; [ key: string ]: unknown }
@@ -139,7 +139,7 @@ function DropdownMenu( dropdownMenuProps: DropdownMenuProps ) {
 	}
 
 	// Normalize controls to nested array of objects (sets of controls)
-	let controlSets: NormalizedControls;
+	let controlSets: DropdownOption[][];
 	if ( controls?.length ) {
 		// @ts-expect-error The check below is needed because `DropdownMenus`
 		// rendered by `ToolBarGroup` receive controls as a nested array.
@@ -147,7 +147,7 @@ function DropdownMenu( dropdownMenuProps: DropdownMenuProps ) {
 		if ( ! Array.isArray( controlSets[ 0 ] ) ) {
 			// This is not ideal, but at this point we know that `controls` is
 			// not a nested array, even if TypeScript doesn't.
-			controlSets = [ controls as Controls ];
+			controlSets = [ controls as DropdownOption[] ];
 		}
 	}
 
diff --git a/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/types.ts b/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/types.ts
index 7b96d4a138b21..badfcb54d6072 100644
--- a/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/types.ts
+++ b/packages/components/src/dropdown-menu/types.ts
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ import type { DropdownProps } from '../dropdown/types';
 import type { Props as IconProps } from '../icon';
 import type { NavigableMenuProps } from '../navigable-container/types';
 
-type DropdownOption = {
+export type DropdownOption = {
 	/**
 	 * The Dashicon icon slug to be shown for the option.
 	 */
@@ -44,9 +44,6 @@ type DropdownOption = {
 	role?: HTMLElement[ 'role' ];
 };
 
-export type Controls = DropdownOption[];
-export type NormalizedControls = DropdownOption[][];
-
 type DropdownCallbackProps = {
 	isOpen: boolean;
 	onToggle: () => void;
@@ -142,5 +139,5 @@ export type DropdownMenuProps = {
 	 *
 	 * A valid DropdownMenu must specify a `controls` or `children` prop, or both.
 	 */
-	controls?: Controls | NormalizedControls;
+	controls?: DropdownOption[] | DropdownOption[][];
 };