to eat the principal meal of the day; have dinner.
to take any meal.
(intr) to eat dinner
(intr; often foll by on, off, or upon) to make one's meal (of)
the guests dined upon roast beef
informal (tr) to entertain to dinner (esp in the phrase wine and dine someone )
The name Diné comes from the Native Athabascan language of the tribe, and it is preferred by many over Navajo, a name assigned by Spanish missionaries. Nevertheless, Navajo and Navaho are still in use and remain acceptable.
1250–1300; Middle English dinen < Anglo-French, Old French di ( s ) ner < Vulgar Latin *disjējūnāre to break one's fast, equivalent to Latin dis- dis- 1 + Late Latin jējūnāre to fast; see jejune
First recorded in 1915–20; a self-designation meaning “The People”; see also Navajo ( def. )
To dine is to eat a meal, particularly the last meal of the day. When you invite friends over for dinner, you can ask them if they'd like to dine with you. You can dine at home, or dine at a fancy restaurant — in either case, you're eating dinner. If someone tells you they "dine out on" a funny story, they mean it's endlessly entertaining and buys them a lot of good will and amusement. The verb dine comes from the Old French disner, "to dine" or "to have a meal," from desjunare, "to break one's fast."
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
From here on out, it’s the knockout rounds, do-or-die, win for national glory, or go to the airport and dine on our $8 cheese sticks.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 29, 2026
Almost a third of Bethell's runs from his eight-Test career came in his breakthrough hundred in Sydney, a knock he cannot dine out on forever.
From BBC • Jun. 24, 2026
Trump is also scheduled to dine at the Versailles palace west of Paris with Macron on Wednesday evening, after the summit wraps up.
From Barron's • Jun. 13, 2026
It was only after quarantine, as I was able to dine outside in Manhattan again with real people, when I realized I had lost the plot.
From Salon • Jun. 3, 2026
In the mornings he seemed much engaged with business, and, in the afternoon, gentlemen from Millcote or the neighbourhood called, and sometimes stayed to dine with him.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
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.
