cocktail party

American  

noun

1. a social gathering, often held during the cocktail hour, at which cocktails and other alcoholic beverages, hors d'oeuvres, and canapés are served.

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Etymology

Origin of cocktail party

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

If it doesn’t work out, when people ask me what I do at cocktail parties, I’ll just say I’m an architect.

From Barron's

“Who said that wakes and funerals are the cocktail parties of the old?” one character asks.

From The Wall Street Journal

The technical version of his job is AI toxicology analyst—the sort of title that makes even sober eyes glaze over at cocktail parties.

From The Wall Street Journal

Nobody brags about water stocks at cocktail parties — that’s how you know they might actually work.

From MarketWatch

Finally, at a cocktail party in late March, she spotted him.

From Literature