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.

---

Etymology

Origin of cocktail party

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cocktail party

She was captured in photos at an embassy cocktail party in Accra as the Palisades fire exploded Jan. 7, 2025.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026

I did once spy him across the room at a cocktail party for Prince Andrew in the early 2000s.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 20, 2026

“He’s calm as a monk in a firefight,” Craig Renaud says, “but a cocktail party in Brooklyn is absolutely terrifying.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 23, 2026

Dimon needed to get to his own company’s cocktail party at the nearby Kirchner Museum.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026

I bring some of the fancy food from that cocktail party up to the roof in a small container.

From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi