cantina

American

[kan-tee-nuh, kahn-tee-nah] / kænˈti nə, kɑnˈti nɑ /

noun

Southwestern U.S.

plural

cantinas

a saloon; bar.

cantina British

/ kænˈtiːnə /

noun

a bar or wine shop, esp in a Spanish-speaking country

"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

Etymology

Origin of cantina

1835–45, < Spanish < Italian; canteen

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.

There’s a “Star Wars” cantina bit, a soupçon of James Bond in the score at a fancy gala and dashes of Steven Spielberg in the camerawork.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2025

The opening scene in “The Acolyte” takes place in an eatery crowded with colorful aliens, a callback to the Mos Eisley cantina from the first “Star Wars” movie, in 1977.

From New York Times • May 29, 2024

Martinez ran the cantina from 2000 to 2019.

From Washington Times • Jul. 3, 2023

They join a roster that includes tacos del barrio, cantina nachos with chicken, braised pork or sweet potato, and of course the ever popular fried grasshoppers.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 22, 2023

An old woman emerges from a shack behind the cantina, buttoning up a torn housedress.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023