cafetorium

English

Etymology

Blend of cafeteria +‎ auditorium (originated around 1950).

Noun

cafetorium (plural cafetoriums or cafetoria)

1. A large room, usually in a school, used as both a cafeteria and an auditorium.
   • 1948, University of the State of New York, Planning The School Auditorium, page 14:

     There is another combination which is regarded favorably, particularly where economy of space is a necessity. This is the combined cafeteria-auditorium unit and is often called a cafetorium or an auditeria.

   • 1967, Beverly Cleary, Mitch and Amy, HarperCollins, published 2009, →ISBN, pages 86–87:

     Then Mitchell reminded his mother that they both needed money to pay for their lunches, which meant a search for the exact change to pay for two lunches so they would not slow up the line in the cafetorium.

Related terms

• auditeria

References

• “cafetorium”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN.
• “cafetorium”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.