eatery
Americannoun
-
eateries
plural
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of eatery
Explanation
Use the word eatery when you're talking about a cafe or restaurant. You might stop at a great local eatery for a burger after seeing a movie. Eatery is a casual or informal word for a place to buy and eat prepared food. A diner is one kind of eatery, and a Chinese restaurant is another. You might have a favorite eatery among all the choices on a college campus, or know of an all-night eatery where you can get a snack at three a.m. Eatery was first used right around 1901, from eat, with its Old English root of etan, "to eat, devour, or consume."
Vocabulary lists containing eatery
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.
See Examples For:
Pinky Cubacub, 55, said as she boarded up the windows of her eatery in Guam that she had lined up early on Saturday morning to buy $500 worth of plywood at a lumber store.
From Barron's ● Jul. 5, 2026
Messrs. White and Moss-Bachrach and Ms. Edebiri have been the main ingredients over the course of “The Bear,” which refers to both Mr. White’s character and his eatery.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Some have posted online about the free chips and salsa that comes at Hispanic restaurants or the free re-fills offered at nearly every eatery.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
The complex was best known as the longtime home of the beloved Italian eatery Casa Nostra Ristorante, which closed a week before the Jan. 7, 2025, Palisades Fire and never reopened.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 13, 2026
Dr. Gazzaley sits at Maverick’s, an upscale eatery serving American comfort food.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Investigations into individual cases also suggest the eateries involved were buying eggs from abroad.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Culver City residents take a stand against a proposed In-N-Out over traffic, pollution and safety concerns, part of a growing national backlash against drive-through eateries.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
The Michelin Guide awards up to three stars to eateries based on ingredient quality, flavour mastery, cooking technique, chef's personality and consistency.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
And while business manager visa holders have a three-year grace period to meet the new conditions, some thriving businesses -- including many popular eateries in Okubo -- fear they won't manage.
From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026
I loved all the stalls and the small eateries selling different kinds of food.
From "It All Comes Down to This" by Karen English
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.
