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Soheil1 Posted 14 years ago
Vocabulary
Dinner
Hello.
This is how dinner is defined:
This is how dinner is defined:
Now what is dinner?The senses 1&2 are contradicting each other!
dinner ['d?n?]
n
1. (Cookery) a meal taken in the evening
2. (Cookery) a meal taken at midday, esp when it is the main meal of the day; lunch
3. (Cookery)
a. a formal evening meal, as of a club, society, etc.
b. a public banquet in honour of someone or something
4. (Cookery) a complete meal at a fixed price in a restaurant; table d'hôte
5. (Cookery) (modifier) of, relating to, or used at dinner dinner platedinner tabledinner hour
do like a dinner(usually passive)Australinformal to do for, overpower, or outdo
[from Old French disner; see dine]
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/_/misc/HarperCollinsProducts.aspx?English© HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003
Top answer
They are not contradictory; they are two different meanings for the word, just as with other words such as cleave, overlook, presently, sanction, etc.
- They are not contradictory; they are two different meanings for the word, just as with other words such as cleave, overlook, presently, sanction, etc.
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6 Answers
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They are not contradictory; they are two different meanings for the word, just as with other words such as cleave, overlook, presently, sanction, etc.
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sense 1 states it's eaten in the evening
sense 2 says it is eaten in the midday!
sense 2 says it is eaten in the midday!
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I am aware of that. Some people use sense 1 and others use sense 2.
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But 'dinner' should have one fixed meaning.Doesn't it?Why would it be different?There should be something in common!
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No, that is not right at all. Please clear your head. I have already given you a few other English words with conflicting meanings, and I am sure that you could find some in your own language if you relax and think about it.
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Here's what the two meanings have in common -- usually "dinner" refers to the largest meal of the day. (See the secondpart of definition #2.) In some places the main meal is eaten at mid-day, and in other places it is eaten in the evening. People generally either have breakfast, lunch and dinner (probably the most common in most parts of the U.S.) or breakfast, dinner and supper.
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