lunch

American  

[luhnch] / lʌntʃ /

noun

1. a light midday meal between breakfast and dinner; luncheon.

2. any light meal or snack.

3. a restaurant or lunchroom.

   Let's eat at the dairy lunch.

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verb (used without object)

1. to eat lunch.

   We lunched quite late today.

verb (used with object)

1. to provide lunch for.

   They lunched us in regal fashion.

idioms

1. out to lunch, not paying attention or tending to business; negligent.

   You must have been out to lunch when you wrote that weird report.

lunch British  

/ lʌntʃ /

noun

1. a meal eaten during the middle of the day

2. (among older people) mid-afternoon tea

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verb

1. (intr) to eat lunch

2. (tr) to provide or buy lunch for

lunch More Idioms  

1. see eat someone alive (someone's lunch); free lunch; lose one's lunch; out to (lunch).

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Other Word Forms

• luncher
  noun
• lunchless
  adjective
• prelunch
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of lunch

First recorded in 1585–95; short for luncheon

Explanation

Lunch is the meal you eat in the middle of the day. If you only have a short lunch break during your school or work day, you might quickly eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. The size of your lunch depends on what country you live in. In the US, most people eat a small lunch and a larger dinner at the end of the day. The word is a somewhat fancy verb, too: "Shall we lunch at the club, or have the cook make us something at home?" Lunch is a shortened version of luncheon, which may stem from the earlier dialectical lunch, "hunk of bread and cheese."

Example Sentences

Some districts restrict phones all day while others allow students to have them during passing periods and lunch.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

The 18-year-old says the lunch shaming caused him to scout secluded places on his school’s outdoor campus to eat.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

At its peak, nearly 4,500 dabbawalas delivered around 50,000 lunch boxes across Mumbai every day, according to organisations that regulate and monitor the service.

From BBC • May 29, 2026

At lunch, Harding met several members of the L.A.

From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026

This time when I brought in her lunch she was writing letters.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom