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café

1 American  
[ka-fey, kuh-, ka-fey] / kæˈfeɪ, kə-, kaˈfeɪ /
Or cafe

noun

plural

cafés

  1. a small, unpretentious restaurant, often with exterior seating on a patio or extending onto the sidewalk.

    Synonyms:
    tearoom, lunchroom, bistro, coffeehouse

  2. coffee.

    I pick up a café and a croissant on my commute in to work every morning.
CAFE 2 American  
[ka-fey, kuh-] / kæˈfeɪ, kə- /

noun

  1. a U.S. federally mandated standard of average minimum miles-per-gallon fuel consumption for all the cars produced by an automobile manufacturer in a given year.

café British  
/ ˈkæfeɪ, ˈkæfɪ /

noun

  1. a small or inexpensive restaurant or coffee bar, serving light meals and refreshments

  2. a corner shop or grocer

"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

Spelling

See resume 2.

Etymology

Origin of café1

First recorded in 1780–90; from French: literally, “coffee”; coffee

Origin of CAFE1

C(orporate) A(verage) F(uel) E(conomy)

Compare meaning

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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.

On the other side of Hollywood Boulevard, local business Bopomofo Cafe’s location in the Ovation Hollywood shopping complex was relatively quiet on Thursday night.

From Los Angeles Times

Earlier this month, the Asian American cafe, which sells boba and snacks — including a sandwich described by L.A.

From Los Angeles Times

The cafe initially mulled a price increase, but decided to first try removing some items from its menu and offering a limited food menu an hour before it closes, said Philip Wang, who co-founded Bopomofo with partner Eric Wang in 2019.

From Los Angeles Times

Philip Wang said he’s confident that the drinks his cafe sells, which don’t use artificial flavors, syrups or powders, will continue to attract customers.

From Los Angeles Times

Many Ukrainian refugees live in Ludlow, with three of them working at the cafe at St Laurence's Church.

From BBC

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.