dinner or tea?

[cacian]

or supper?
which do you say normally?

i say dinner.
my mother says souper.
my ex mother in law, from a posh background, says supper.

[Eman Resu]

"Supper" (from the Old English "sūpa" - "to drink") was traditionally the last, and lightest meal of the day, consisting generally of fortified broth. "Dinner" (from "desjunare" [which gives us the modern ""déjeuner" - "luncheon" in France, but "breakfast" elsewhere] which evolved into "disner" in Middle French) was the first and largest meal. The current usage varies regionally; in the United Kingdom, northern England (and Scotland) seem to hold to the more traditional usage (as is the case in the southern United States where "dinner" is the largest meal, and is served at noon or thereabouts), while "dinner" is the name given to the last and largest meal in the south - the usual explanation being that more rural, typically agrarian areas tended to serve large meals at midday to keep energy levels higher through the workday, while in more populated areas, the opposite was true.

"Tea" was, traditionally, the province of the wealthy, who had little else better to do than to slip an extra "meal" into their day. Its evolution as "tea" into the modern "tea" or "meat tea" as a full meal was simply a "borrowing of phrase" of the working class from the leisure class.

In modern America, scientists and lexicographers are toiling feverishly together to address a vast crisis, since Americans have run out of names for their countless daily meals. "Elevenses" was recently suggested as the meal served between breakfast and lunch. but the idea was promptly discarded when it became clear that - owed to the "educational crisis" - very few Americans could count to eleven without using their toes, and there remain only an handful of Americans who can still see their feet.

[mal4mac]

From experience, I think Eman Resu is basically correct about the UK, my northern working class family called the meal at noon "dinner", the meal at around 5pm "tea", and the last meal "supper". I found the middle class Southerners at University taking "lunch" instead of "dinner", "dinner" instead of "tea", and "pub" instead of supper :) As to my usage now, I adapt to circumstance.

[Mohammad Ahmad]

or supper?
which do you say normally?

i say dinner.
my mother says souper.
my ex mother in law, from a posh background, says supper.
What do you mean by your ex mother in law? Is she your nurse?
I think there is no difference between suppertime & dinner time, moreover American would say supper

[Mohammad Ahmad]

or supper?
which do you say normally?

i say dinner.
my mother says souper.
my ex mother in law, from a posh background, says supper.
What do you mean by your ex mother in law? Is she your nurse?
I think there is no difference between suppertime & dinnertime, moreover American would say supper
I am satisfied in the answer of( Eman Resu) since I heard that suppertime is delayed to be around ten O'clock at night.
Isn't right or not?

[OrphanPip]

Montreal anglophones generally refer to the meals in order as breakfast, lunch, and supper. Although, it is not unusual to hear dinner used in place of lunch or supper, the latter probably due to the influence of Americans.

Francophones in Montreal say déjeuner, diner, and souper (I believe this is also common in Belgium/Northern France). As opposed to the Parisian French petit déjeuner, déjeuner, and diner.

[Emil Miller]

In England the correct procedure is:

Breakfast - Morning

Lunch- Mid-Day

Tea - 5.00 pm

Dinner - 8.00 pm

Supper - 11 pm

As someone who is not particularly interested in food, I eat as and when.

[TheFifthElement]

In England the correct procedure is:

Breakfast - Morning

Lunch- Mid-Day

Tea - 5.00 pm

Dinner - 8.00 pm

Supper - 11 pm

As someone who is not particularly interested in food, I eat as and when.
Or rather in *some* parts of England. It's not universally the case, as has already been mentioned. In the North there is a general, but not universal, preference for: breakfast, dinner, tea, supper.

[synodbio]

Normally i will say dinner, if am speaking to some well educated person or professional i will use word supper.

[cacian]

In England the correct procedure is:

Breakfast - Morning

Lunch- Mid-Day

Tea - 5.00 pm

Dinner - 8.00 pm

Supper - 11 pm

As someone who is not particularly interested in food, I eat as and when.

supper at 11? how is that? it is a bit late isn't it?

[cacian]

Or rather in *some* parts of England. It's not universally the case, as has already been mentioned. In the North there is a general, but not universal, preference for: breakfast, dinner, tea, supper.

in that order?
I thought it was breakfast then either brunch then lunch and dinner/tea or supper?
afters is one word I dislike.

[cacian]

What do you mean by your ex mother in law? Is she your nurse?
I think there is no difference between suppertime & dinner time, moreover American would say supper

what do you mean nurse? she is my ex mother in law. the mother of my ex husband.

[papayahed]

In the states it depends where you live.

In the midwest dinner is ~ 6 pm and supper = dinner.

I moved south a while back and my coworker asked me if I wanted to go to dinner. I thought it was weird but said ok. Coworker showed up at my office door at noon to go to dinner.

In the south dinner = noon and dinner ≠ supper.

[TheFifthElement]

in that order?
I thought it was breakfast then either brunch then lunch and dinner/tea or supper?
afters is one word I dislike.

Yes, in that order. Eman Resu explained it quite reasonably above. In Northern England it is more common to encounter 'dinner' as meaning the midday meal, though 'lunch' is gaining ground and often used, with 'tea' meaning the main evening meal. 'Supper' is usually a snack before bedtime, often accompanied with a milky beverage.

'Brunch' is a term I have never heard used in the North, with the exception, perhaps, of it being read from a chain restaurant menu.

'Afters' is a reasonable all-encompassing term for a small, usually calorific food item consumed after the main course. Useful in those circumstances where other terms don't quite work e.g. 'pudding', 'sweet', 'dessert' all of which can relate to a specific type of food item and all of which exclude the possibility of a cheese & cracker combo or my children's preferred option of a bag of Walkers crisps.

[SentimentalSlop]

I always say supper. I dislike using the word dinner for some reason, no matter what meal I apply it to. I just don't like it....

[cacian]

I always say supper. I dislike using the word dinner for some reason, no matter what meal I apply it to. I just don't like it....

I am the opposite. I don't like supper because it reminds me of soup. the French say 'souper'. I prefer dinner. nothing to do with Diners. I do no like that either.

[qimissung]

Irregardless of correct usage I grew up using supper and dinner interchangeably. I usually use lunch for the midday meal and dinner for the large evening meal, though, nowadays.

[rickyjhon]

i think its dinner and almost friends are told me about dinner.

[claytonk983]

i say supper.But i like dinner word too.