feast
Americannoun
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feasts
plural
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any rich or abundant meal.
The steak dinner was a feast.
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a sumptuous entertainment or meal for many guests.
a wedding feast.
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something highly agreeable.
The Rembrandt exhibition was a feast for the eyes.
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a periodical celebration or time of celebration, usually of a religious nature, commemorating an event, person, etc..
Every year, in September, the townspeople have a feast in honor of their patron saint.
verb (used without object)
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feasts,
present (3rd person singular)
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feasted,
past participle, past
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feasting
present participle
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to have or partake of a feast; eat sumptuously.
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to dwell with gratification or delight, as on a picture or view.
verb (used with object)
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feasts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
feasted,
past participle, past
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feasting
present participle
idioms
noun
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a large and sumptuous meal, usually given as an entertainment for several people
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a periodic religious celebration
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something extremely pleasing or sumptuous
a feast for the eyes
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a festival or other event of variable date
verb
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(intr)
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to eat a feast
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(usually foll by on) to enjoy the eating (of), as if feasting
to feast on cakes
-
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(tr) to give a feast to
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to take great delight (in)
to feast on beautiful paintings
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(tr) to regale or delight
to feast one's mind or one's eyes
Synonym Usage
Feast, banquet imply large social events, with an abundance of food. A feast is a meal with a plenteous supply of food and drink for a large company: to provide a feast for all company employees. A banquet is an elaborate feast for a formal and ceremonious occasion: the main speaker at a banquet.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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feasternoun
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prefeastnoun
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overfeastverb
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outfeastverb (used with object)
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feastlessadjective
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unfeastedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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feastsimple
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feastssimple
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have feastedperfect
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has feastedperfect
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am feastingprogressive
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are feastingprogressive
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is feastingprogressive
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have been feastingperfect progressive
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has been feastingperfect progressive
Past
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feastedsimple
-
had feastedperfect
-
was feastingprogressive
-
were feastingprogressive
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had been feastingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of feast
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English feste, from Old French, from Latin fēsta, neuter plural (reinterpteted as feminine singular noun in Vulgar Latin ) of fēstus “festal, festive,” equivalent to fēs- (akin to fair 2 ) + -tus adjective suffix
Explanation
A feast is a huge, delicious meal that's served at a party or celebration. You might have a feast to celebrate the last day of school every year. You can use the word feast in several different ways. It's good for describing the meal you eat at a party, or as a verb meaning "to eat in celebration." You might feast for several days during your family reunion. You can also use feast figuratively to mean a delight, as when you say, "Your garden is a feast for the eyes, Grandma." The Latin root, festa, means "holidays or feasts," from festus, "festive, joyful, or merry."
Vocabulary lists containing feast
Eat Your Words
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Joyous Kwanzaa! Vocabulary Worth Celebrating
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"Encounter"
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It’s a veritable feast for the ears, and “My Aim Is True” is a worthy subject for all of the attendant attention.
From Salon ● Oct. 14, 2026
This repeating pattern of intense feeding, extended rest, and rising activity closely matched the feast and fast rhythm documented among wild lion populations.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
After a feast of points in week one, defences hit back in week two of the NFL.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026
You could have customers showing up ordering a feast of fillet steaks because they got an inside tip on your generosity.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026
So I played along, jumping off the last two steps and running into the kitchen dressed in my school uniform and new sneakers, greeted by the table laid out with my feast.
From "Monday's Not Coming" by Tiffany D. Jackson
The Muslim community is currently preparing for one of its holiest seasons and its biggest feasts.
From BBC ● May 19, 2026
And I grew up in a large extended family, eating kamayan feasts together with our hands.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 13, 2026
The bigger cities like New York and Philadelphia boasted theaters, but for most American families across the 13 newly independent states, public entertainment options generally were limited to dances, feasts and local traveling fairs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 15, 2026
Schwarzenegger called the Hahnenkamm "the best run with the best athletes", proceeding to list all his Austrian food favourites on which he feasts in Kitzbuehel.
From Barron's ● Jan. 24, 2026
The community held going-away parties and prepared feasts for the young men heading off to the front.
From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly
With the always-excellent Paudie Clifford influential early on, Kerry feasted on Mayo nerves to register the game's three opening scores, with David Clifford striking twice after Dylan Casey fisted over the bar.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
We feasted on smoked pork belly, which was fatty and fork-tender, smoked brisket, baked beans, and, of course, candied sweet potato with plenty of butter, cinnamon, and sugar.
From Salon ● Jan. 13, 2026
More than 90 people have been charged with setting up sham businesses and nonprofits in Minnesota that feasted on Medicaid, food, housing and other welfare programs.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 4, 2026
Australia resumed at 271-4 with Head on 142 and Carey not out 52 and they again feasted early on some mediocre bowling.
From Barron's ● Dec. 20, 2025
As the day grew brighter and warmer, the hidden children tried to sleep, but ants and mosquitoes feasted on their bodies while the growing heat of the day made them damp with sweat.
From "Copper Sun" by Sharon M. Draper
"Wild lions don't eat at the same time every day. They experience natural periods of feasting and fasting depending on hunting success," Hryhorenko said.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 7, 2026
The game meat is expected to be served as part of the traditional feasting associated with the Independence Day celebrations.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
No, it is not the police dogs' annual convention, but the latest iteration of a feasting phenomenon that is sweeping provincial France.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
Now the cubs are feasting on solid foods and love fruits and leaves from native plants, and they’ll continue exploring the larger outdoor area as they grow more confident.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
It was that warmer temperatures all around the world were melting the permafrost in the Arctic, and tiny microbes were feasting on the newly unfrozen plant material in the ground.
From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
