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View synonyms for meal

meal

1

[ meel ]

noun

  1. the food served and eaten especially at one of the customary, regular occasions for taking food during the day, as breakfast, lunch, or supper.
  2. one of these regular occasions or times for eating food.


meal

2

[ meel ]

noun

  1. a coarse, unsifted powder ground from the edible seeds of any grain:

    wheat meal;

    cornmeal.

  2. any ground or powdery substance, as of nuts or seeds, resembling this.

-meal

3
  1. a native English combining form, now unproductive, denoting a fixed measure at a time:

    piecemeal.

meal

1

/ miːl /

noun

  1. the edible part of a grain or pulse (excluding wheat) ground to a coarse powder, used chiefly as animal food
  2. oatmeal
  3. maize flour
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


meal

2

/ miːl /

noun

    1. any of the regular occasions, such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc, when food is served and eaten
    2. ( in combination ) prandial

      mealtime

  1. the food served and eaten
  2. make a meal of informal.
    to perform (a task) with unnecessarily great effort
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • ˈmeal-less, adjective
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Other Words From

  • mealless adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of meal1

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English mǣl “measure, fixed time, occasion”; cognate with German Mal “time,” Mahl “meal,” Old Norse māl, Gothic mēl “time, hour”

Origin of meal2

First recorded before 900; Middle English mele, Old English melu; cognate with German Mehl, Dutch meel, Old Norse mjǫl, Gothic malan; akin to Latin molere “to grind” ( mill 1 )

Origin of meal3

Middle English -mele, Old English -mǣlum, combining form representing mǣl meal 1
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Word History and Origins

Origin of meal1

Old English melu; compare Dutch meel, Old High German melo, Old Norse mjöl

Origin of meal2

Old English mǣl measure, set time, meal; related to Old High German māl mealtime
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Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with meal ; also see square meal .
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Example Sentences

Yet we keep doing the cleanses, buying the meal replacement bars, and joining Weight Watchers.

Like any exciting meal, Food will leave you smiling and satisfied.

In the mid-afternoon, Ramos and Liu were parked on Tomkins Avenue on a meal break.

What better way to bring up a serious issue without commandeering the meal?

He refused to dine with people, because he did not like being agitated during meal times.

Individual samples may be slightly alkaline, especially after a full meal.

Following the boys, Baptiste entered by the kitchen door to encounter the mother and three daughters preparing the meal.

She smiled a smile after this that was one of satisfaction, and at that moment her sisters called that the meal was ready.

In my house there has never been sufficient food for a solid meal, and I have not land enough even for an insect to rest upon.

He was still at breakfast, and advancing slowly in the meal, like a gentleman whose breakfast was his greatest care in life.

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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.

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