dive bar
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of dive bar
First recorded in 1940–45
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 are dive bar mimosas, strip malls, grocery aisles and cheap canned noodles.
From Salon ● Jun. 30, 2026
“We used to love going to the Smog Cutter,” she says of the shuttered Silver Lake dive bar, “to have a couple Bud Lights and sing Mariah Carey really poorly.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2025
It all started in 1973 when proprietor Hilly Kristal transformed his dive bar into a venue for Country, Bluegrass, Blues and Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers — CBGB-OMFUG for short.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2025
In January 1983, while on location in St. Barts for a photo shoot, she met Billy Joel at a motel dive bar.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2025
The Hideout is a dive bar made of wooden planks that's nestled between a factory and some Department of Transportation building.
From "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" by John Green and David Levithan
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.
