Meaning & use
dinner
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
The main meal of the day, usually eaten in the evening.
Grammar: Countable when referring to a specific meal (a dinner, two dinners), uncountable when talking about the meal in general (have dinner).
Patterns
- have dinner
- eat dinner
- for dinner
- dinner is ready
We usually have dinner at seven o'clock.
She invited us to dinner at her house.
What are you having for dinner tonight?
nouncountable
A formal evening meal or banquet for a special occasion or group.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'annual', 'charity', 'award': a charity dinner.
Patterns
- a dinner for someone
- a charity dinner
- an annual dinner
The company held its annual dinner at a grand hotel.
They attended a charity dinner to raise funds for the hospital.
The award dinner was attended by many celebrities.
noununcountableBritishregionalold-fashioned
In some regions, especially older British usage, the main meal eaten in the middle of the day.
Grammar: Uncountable; used without an article: have dinner at midday.
Patterns
- have dinner at midday
- dinner time
In rural areas, many people still have their dinner at noon.
The farmers stopped for dinner in the field at midday.
Word forms
| plural | dinners |
|---|
Common combinations
- have dinner
- We had dinner with friends last night.
- dinner party
- They are hosting a dinner party on Saturday.
- dinner table
- Please set the dinner table.
- dinner time
- It's almost dinner time.
- cook dinner
- I'll cook dinner while you relax.
- out to dinner
- They went out to dinner to celebrate.
Synonyms and how they differ
- supper
- Supper is a lighter evening meal, often informal, while dinner is usually the main meal.
- banquet
- Banquet is a formal, large meal for many people, whereas dinner can be any evening meal.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: dinner or diner?
dinner vs diner
A diner is a person eating or a type of restaurant; dinner is the meal itself.
Practice
We invited them over for _____ at our house.
Choose one answer.
When referring to the meal in general, 'dinner' is uncountable and takes no article. 'A dinner' would suggest a formal event, which is not implied here. 'The dinner' would be specific, and 'dinners' is plural.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dinner”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.