Meaning & use
prelunch
Last updated
UK/ˌpriːˈlʌntʃ/
US/ˌpriːˈlʌntʃ/
Meaning
adjectivebefore a noun
Happening or provided in the period of time shortly before the midday meal.
Grammar: Comes before the noun it describes: a prelunch meeting, not a meeting that is prelunch.
Patterns
- a prelunch something
The prelunch session ran long, so we all arrived at the cafeteria late.
She keeps a prelunch snack in her desk drawer for days like this.
Our prelunch walk around the lake has become a daily habit.
Common combinations
- prelunch meeting
- The prelunch meeting was short because everyone was hungry.
- prelunch snack
- A prelunch snack of fruit kept the children going until noon.
- prelunch workout
- He prefers a prelunch workout when the gym is nearly empty.
- prelunch rush
- The bakery gets a small prelunch rush around eleven.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mid-morning
- Mid-morning names a stretch of the day, while prelunch is defined by the meal that follows it, so it can shift with when people eat.
- before-lunch
- Before-lunch is the plainer, hyphenated alternative and is more at home in ordinary speech than the compact prelunch.
Opposites
postlunchafter-lunch
Word family
- lunch noun
- the midday meal
- postlunch adjective
- happening after the midday meal
- pre-dinner adjective
- happening before the evening meal
Practice
Which phrase best describes a quiz held at 11:30, just before people eat at noon?
Choose one answer.
Prelunch means shortly before the midday meal, which fits 11:30. Postlunch would be after the meal, and the others refer to different meals.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “prelunch”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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