dinnertime

See also: dinner-time and dinner time

English

Alternative forms

• dinner time
• dinner-time

Etymology

From dinner +‎ time.

Pronunciation

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

dinnertime (countable and uncountable, plural dinnertimes)

1. The time when dinner takes place, as:

   Synonyms: dinner hour, dining time

   • 1846, Charles Elmé Francatelli, The Modern Cook, page 243:

     An hour before dinnertime, steam the mazarine in the usual way, and when done, turn it out of the mould on its dish […]

   • 2004, Vince Staten, Why Is The Foul Pole Fair?, page 204:

     By the thirteenth century mustard was a staple of Paris saucemakers, who peddled the product on the street every evening around dinnertime.

   1. (now chiefly British) The midday mealtime as the main one: lunchtime.
   2. The evening mealtime as the main one: suppertime.

Usage notes

The usage varies between eras and regions, because the circadian rhythm of meals varies by culture. Dated references to dinner, dinnertime, and the dinner pail cannot be assumed to refer to an evening meal; for example, what some U.S. factory workers in the past called their dinner pail was what would today be called a lunchpail or lunchbox.

Hypernyms

• mealtime

Coordinate terms

• breakfast-time
• teatime

Translations

time when dinner takes place

• Danish: spisetid c
• Finnish: päivällisaika
• Romanian: cină (ro)

mid-day break — see lunchtime

Anagrams

• intermedin, intermined