banquet

[ bang-kwit ]

noun

1. a lavish meal; feast.
2. a ceremonious public dinner, especially one honoring a person, benefiting a charity, etc.

verb (used with object)

, ban·quet·ed, ban·quet·ing.

1. to entertain or regale with a banquet:

   They banqueted the visiting prime minister in grand style.

verb (used without object)

, ban·quet·ed, ban·quet·ing.

1. to have or attend a banquet; feast:

   They banqueted on pheasant, wild boar, and three kinds of fish.

banquet

/ ˈbæŋkwɪt /

noun

1. a lavish and sumptuous meal; feast
2. a ceremonial meal for many people, often followed by speeches

verb

1. intr to hold or take part in a banquet
2. tr to entertain or honour (a person) with a banquet

Derived Forms

• ˈbanqueter, noun

Other Words From

• banquet·er ban·que·teer [bang-kwi-, teer], noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of banquet¹

First recorded in 1450–1500; from Middle French, from Italian banchetto ( banc(o) “table” ( bank ² ) + -etto -et ); replacing late Middle English bankat, banket(te), from Middle French

Word History and Origins

Origin of banquet¹

C15: from Old French, from Italian banchetto , from banco a table, of Germanic origin; see bank ¹

Synonym Study

See feast.

Example Sentences

Earlier this month, a wedding banquet in China’s southwestern Sichuan province featured 300 guests.

From Fortune

You can’t always eat what the animals eatIn the snow-covered landscape, a few stray berries may look like a banquet to a starving survivor.

From Popular-Science

A police department in Georgia, for example, once spent $227,000 on an armored personnel carrier, and a sheriff in New Mexico splashed out $4,600 for an awards banquet.

From ProPublica

He was renowned as the organizer of the Big Ten party, an annual holiday bash he threw with nine other attorneys at Santia Hall, a banquet space in nearby Keego Harbor.

From Outside Online

Increased state enforcement will also target banquet halls, nightclubs and other venues that host gatherings.

From Washington Post

The head banquet man at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New York City started serving the concoction as a menu staple in 1938.

From The Daily Beast

The banquet was paid for with public funds, and taxpayers were understandably upset.

From The Daily Beast

A table creaking under the weight of a Christmas banquet, a classic celebration of binge eating and drinking.

From The Daily Beast

Another island tale purports that there was once a banquet arranged at the manor for Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

From The Daily Beast

A series of staircases winds under the lobby and opens onto a lavish banquet room, at once classical, futuristic, and whimsical.

From The Daily Beast

My chief attended the banquet and I remained at home to hear the news when he returned.

From Project Gutenberg

After the formal proclamation was issued the function terminated with a banquet given to 200 insurgent notabilities.

From Project Gutenberg

Baltasar's profane banquet: his sentence is denounced by a handwriting on the wall, which Daniel reads and interprets.

From Project Gutenberg

During the banquet the room was filled with people of fashion, who went to see the grandees eat and drink.

From Project Gutenberg

The fourth scene, to the extreme right of the vault, represents the funeral banquet in honor of Vibia.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• feast
• festivity
• meal
• reception

More About Banquet

What does banquet mean?

A banquet is a feast, as in Theo likes to host banquets so he can cook all his favorite foods for others.

A banquet is also a public dinner, often very fancy and benefiting a charity or celebrating a person, as in Mac likes to organize the sports banquet at the end of the year for all the school’s teams.

A banquet is basically a feast for a lot of people. It’s a large, sumptuous meal during a ceremonious gathering. Banquets can be arranged to benefit a charity or to celebrate a specific person or group of people.

To banquet means to entertain with a banquet or to have a banquet.

You’ll often hear the phrase banqueting hall, which is a room, especially in large medieval buildings, that is big enough to hold a banquet.

Example: Doreen hosted a banquet to raise money for a children’s charity.

Where does banquet come from?

The first records of the term banquet come from around the late 1400s. It ultimately comes from the Italian word banchetto.

Did you know … ?

What are some other forms related to banquet?

• banqueter (noun)
• banqueteer (noun)

What are some synonyms for banquet?

• feast
• reception
• meal
• festivity

What are some words that share a root or word element with banquet?

• islet
• bank
• banquet room

What are some words that often get used in discussing banquet?

• hall
• table
• royal
• lavish
• attend

How is banquet used in real life?

Banquet is almost exclusively used to refer to a lavish feast or a ceremonial dinner.

Roman mosaic showing a grinning skeleton holding a wine jug in each hand. Once decorating a dining room floor, its message was entirely appropriate to the Romans and no-doubt inspired lively discussion: "Carpe Diem" and enjoy the delights of the banquet while you can. #halloween pic.twitter.com/J01a7bf6O2

— Gareth Harney (@OptimoPrincipi) October 31, 2020

Toni Kroos on Bayern's traditional banquet after away CL games: "Here (in Madrid) we can fly back directly after games. Back when I was in Munich, things were different. There was always a banquet on the program. That was always agonizing" [Podcast Einfach mal Luppen] pic.twitter.com/w7YqMSP4NY

— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) October 28, 2020

4 Nov 1551: Mary of Guise processes through #London to banquet with Edward VI at #Westminster #otd pic.twitter.com/ZjNt6K3eGc

— John McCafferty (@jdmccafferty) November 4, 2020

 

 

Try using banquet!

Which of the following words is NOT a synonym of banquet?

A. fast
B. meal
C. reception
D. feast