- [uncountable, countable]
the main meal of the day, eaten either in the middle of the day or in the evening （中午或晚上吃的）正餐，主餐 It's time for dinner. 该吃饭了。 When do you have dinner? 你什么时间吃主餐？ - for dinner
What shall we have for dinner tonight? 我们今晚吃什么好呢？ - to dinner
As I'm single, I tend to go out to dinner (= eat in a restaurant) a lot. 由于我是单身，我经常出去吃饭。 - (North American English also)
to go to dinner 去吃饭 I'd like to take you out to dinner tonight. 今天晚上我想带你出去吃饭。 Let's invite them to dinner tomorrow. 我们明天请他们吃饭吧。 What time do you serve dinner? 你们什么时候供应主餐？ It's your turn to cook dinner. 该你做饭了。 She didn't eat much dinner. 她没吃多少饭。 I never eat a big dinner. 我向来饭量不大。 Christmas/Thanksgiving dinner 圣诞节/感恩节晚餐 a three-course dinner 三道菜的正餐 a roast/steak/turkey dinner 烤肉/牛排/火鸡晚餐 a family sitting around the dinner table 一家人围坐在餐桌旁 a dinner plate 餐碟 He was trying hard to impress his dinner guests. 他正努力给他的晚餐客人留下深刻印象。 - (British English)
school dinners (= meals provided at school in the middle of the day) 学校午餐
Collocations RestaurantsRestaurants 餐馆 Eating out 去餐馆吃饭 - eat (lunch/dinner)/dine/meet at/in a restaurant
在一家餐馆吃（午／晚）饭／进餐／碰面 - go (out)/take somebody (out) for lunch/dinner/a meal
去／带某人去（外面）吃午饭／吃晚饭／用餐 - have a meal with somebody
与某人一起吃饭 - make/have a reservation (in/under the name of Yamada)
（以山田的名字）预订座位 - reserve/ (especially British English) book a table for six
预订一张坐六人的桌子 - ask for/request a table for two/a table by the window
要一张两人桌／靠窗的桌子
In the restaurant 在餐馆 - wait to be seated
等待就座 - show somebody to their table
把某人引到桌旁 - sit in the corner/by the window/at the bar/at the counter
坐在角落／窗边／吧台边／柜台边 - hand somebody/give somebody the menu/wine list
把菜单／酒水单递给某人 - open/read/study/peruse the menu
打开／看／仔细看菜单 - the restaurant has a three-course set menu/a children’s menu/an extensive wine list
这餐馆有一个三道菜的套餐／儿童菜单／丰富的酒水单 - taste/sample/try the wine
品尝葡萄酒 - the waiter takes your order
服务生帮你点餐 - order/choose/have the soup of the day/one of the specials/the house (British English) speciality/(especially North American English) specialty
点当日例汤／一道特色菜／餐馆特色菜 - serve/finish the first course/the starter/the main course/dessert/coffee
端上／吃完第一道菜／开胃菜／主菜／甜点；端上／喝完咖啡 - complain about the food/the service/your meal
抱怨食物／服务／饭菜不好 - enjoy your meal
享用饭菜
Paying 结账 - pay/ask for (especially British English) the bill/(North American English) the check
付账；要求结账 - pay for/treat somebody to dinner/lunch/the meal
付晚饭／午饭／饭钱；请某人吃晚饭／午饭／饭 - service is (not) included
不含服务费 - give somebody/leave (somebody) a tip
给某人小费
More About mealsmeals- People use the words dinner, lunch, supper and tea in different ways depending on which English-speaking country they come from. In Britain it may also depend on which part of the country or which social class a person comes from.
- A meal eaten in the middle of the day is usually called lunch. If it is the main meal of the day it may also be called dinner in British English, especially in the north of the country and in schools:
I make sure my kids have a hot school dinner, not just a packed lunch. 我确保我的孩子们有一顿热腾腾的学校晚餐，而不仅仅是一顿打包的午餐。
- A main meal eaten in the evening is usually called dinner, especially if it is a formal meal. Supper is also an evening meal, but more informal than dinner and usually eaten at home. It can also be a late meal or something to eat and drink before going to bed.
- In British English, tea is a light meal in the afternoon with sandwiches, cakes, etc. and a cup of tea:
a cream tea. 奶油茶点
tea 亦可指傍晚主餐，尤指孩子傍晚食用的： What time do the kids have their tea? 孩子们什么时候用傍晚主餐？
- As a general rule, if dinner is the word someone uses for the meal in the middle of the day, they probably call the meal in the evening tea or supper. If they call the meal in the middle of the day lunch, they probably call the meal in the evening dinner.
一般说来，若午餐叫 dinner，晚餐则大多叫 tea 或 supper。如果午餐叫 lunch，晚餐则大多叫 dinner。 - Brunch, a combination of breakfast and lunch, is becoming more common, especially as a meal where your guests serve themselves.
brunch 是早餐和午餐合二为一的早午餐，如今日趋普遍，尤为自助餐形式。
Culture mealsmealsAmericans and British people generally eat three meals a day though the names vary according to people's lifestyles and where they live.The first meal of the day is breakfast. The traditional full English breakfast served in many British hotels may include fruit juice, cereal (= a food made from processed grains and eaten with milk), bacon and eggs, often with sausages and tomatoes, toast (= slices of bread cooked until they turn brown) and marmalade (= jam made with oranges and similar fruit), and tea or coffee. Few people have time to prepare a cooked breakfast at home and most have only cereal and/or toast with tea or coffee. Others buy coffee and a pastry on their way to work.The traditional American breakfast includes eggs, some kind of meat and toast. Eggs may be fried, ‘over easy’, ‘over hard’ or ‘sunny side up’, or boiled, poached, scrambled or in an omelette (= beaten together and fried). The meat may be bacon or sausage. People who do not have time for a large meal have toast or cereal and coffee. It is common for Americans to eat breakfast in a restaurant. On Saturday and Sunday many people eat brunch late in the morning. This consists of both breakfast and lunch dishes, including pancakes and waffles (= types of cooked batter) that are eaten with butter and maple syrup (= a sweet, sticky sauce produced from a type of maple tree).Lunch, which is eaten any time after midday, is the main meal of the day for some British people, though people out at work may have only sandwiches. Some people also refer to the midday meal as dinner. Most workers are allowed about an hour off work for it, called the lunch hour. Many schools offer a cooked lunch (school lunch or school dinner), though some students take a packed lunch of sandwiches, fruit, etc. Sunday lunch is special and is, for many families, the biggest meal of the week, consisting traditionally of roast meat and vegetables and a sweet course. In the US lunch is usually a quick meal, eaten around midday. Many workers have a half-hour break for lunch, and buy a sandwich from near their place of work. Business people may sometimes eat a larger lunch and use the time to discuss business.The main meal of the day for most people is the evening meal, called supper, tea or dinner. It is usually a cooked meal with meat or fish or a salad, followed by a sweet course. In Britain younger children may have tea when they get home from school. Tea, meaning a main meal for adults, is the word used in some parts of Britain, especially when the evening meal is eaten early. Dinner sounds more formal than supper, and guests generally receive invitations to ‘dinner’ rather than to ‘supper’. In the US the evening meal is called dinner and is usually eaten around 6 or 6.30 p.m. In many families, both in Britain and in the US, family members eat at different times and rarely sit down at the table together.Many people also eat snacks between meals. Most have tea or coffee in the middle of the morning, often called a coffee break. In Britain in the past this was sometimes also called elevenses. In the afternoon many British people have a tea break. Some hotels and cafes serve afternoon tea which consists of tea or coffee and a choice of sandwiches and cakes. When on holiday people sometimes have a cream tea of scones, jam and cream. In addition many people eat chocolate bars, biscuits (NAmE cookies) or crisps (NAmE chips). Some British people have a snack, sometimes called supper, consisting of a milk drink and a biscuit before they go to bed. In the US children often have milk and cookies after school.Extra ExamplesTopics Cooking and eatinga1Are we expected to dress for dinner? 我们应该穿礼服赴宴吗 ? I always forgot to take my dinner money to school. 我总是忘记带餐费上学。 The extensive dinner menu includes Russian delicacies. 丰盛的菜单包含俄罗斯佳肴。 The school dinner menu always includes a balance of food types. 学校的餐单总是保持食物种类的均衡。 We didn't wash up the dinner things until the morning after. 我们第二天早上才洗餐具。 Have you had dinner yet? 你吃了主餐没有？ I used to hate school dinners. 我以前讨厌学校聚餐。 It's your turn to get dinner. 该你做饭了。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- delicious
- excellent
- good
- …
- table
- things
- plates
- …
- [countable]
a large formal social gathering at which dinner is eaten 宴会 The club's annual dinner will be held on 3 June. 俱乐部一年一度的宴会将于 6 月 3 日举行。 The winner will be announced at a gala dinner. 获胜者将在晚宴上宣布。 a fund-raising/charity dinner 募捐/慈善晚宴
Extra ExamplesA gala dinner was held to celebrate the world premiere of the movie. 为庆祝该电影在全球首映举行了欢庆宴。 A state dinner was held in honour of the visiting Japanese premier. 为欢迎日本首相来访而举行了国宴。 My old school is giving a fund-raising dinner 我的母校将举办筹款晚宴。 The former Olympic champion was invited to speak at a charity dinner. 那位前奥运冠军应邀在慈善晚宴上讲话。 We attended the formal reunion dinner. 我们参加了一个正式的重聚宴会。 We're going to attend a formal dinner in aid of cancer research. 我们正要参加一个赞助癌症研究的正式宴会。 the society's annual dinner dance 这个社团的年度晚宴舞会 The evening includes a three-course dinner with wine. 晚上包括一顿三道菜的葡萄酒晚餐。
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- elegant
- fancy
- lavish
- …
- give
- hold
- host
- …
- party
- engagement
- dance
- …
see also dinner party
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French disner (infinitive used as a noun), probably from desjëuner ‘to break fast’, from des- (expressing reversal) + jëun ‘fasting’.
Idioms
a dog’s breakfast/dinner
- (British English, informal)
a thing that has been done badly 乱七八糟；一团糟
done like a dinner
- (Australian English, New Zealand English, informal)
completely defeated 彻底被打败；一败涂地