dining

dining — verb

1. to eat your main evening meal, which for most people happens after the day's wor

1.verbintransitiveB1
Definition

to eat your main evening meal, which for most people happens after the day's work or classes are over

Example

Sirin and her colleagues were dining at a French bistro when the fire alarm went off.

progressive: 'were dining' for ongoing action

The Tanaka family usually dines together around seven in the evening.

adverb: 'usually dines' + time phrase with 'around'

Common collocations
  • dine on
  • dine at
  • dine with
  • dine alone
  • dine out
  • dine together
Synonyms
  • eat

    less formal and broader in meaning; covers any meal or snack

  • have dinner

    more common in everyday speech; specifies the evening meal

Antonyms
  • fast

    to go without food entirely for a period

Grammar Patterns

dine on [food]

dine at [place]

dine with [person]

Usage Note

The verb 'dine' is slightly more formal than 'eat dinner'. It appears frequently in present participle form as part of compound nouns such as 'dining room' and 'dining table' — see the noun sense for that usage.

Common Mistakes

We dined dinner at the hotel.
We dined at the hotel.
'dine' already carries the meaning of eating a meal, so adding 'dinner' is redundant.
I had a dining with my colleagues.
I was dining with my colleagues.
'dining' is not a countable noun in the verb sense.

2. to eat at a restaurant and avoid paying by leaving quickly before anyone can sto

2.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

to eat at a restaurant and avoid paying by leaving quickly before anyone can stop you

Example

Two men were caught on camera when they tried to dine and dash from the steakhouse.

fixed phrase: 'try to dine and dash' with passive 'were caught'

Maeve felt terrible after her friend pushed her to dine and dash from the small café.

Common collocations
  • dine and dash
  • try to dine and dash
  • caught dining and dashing
Synonyms
Antonyms
  • pay

    to settle the bill before leaving

  • settle up

    to pay what is owed

Grammar Patterns

dine and dash (no object)

try to dine and dash

caught dining and dashing

Usage Note

This is an informal expression for an illegal act. It most often appears in the infinitive form ('to dine and dash') or the past tense ('dined and dashed'). The phrase is commonly used in news reports and casual conversation about dishonest behaviour.

Common Mistakes

They dined and dashed the restaurant.
They dined and dashed from the restaurant.
'dine and dash' is intransitive and cannot take a direct object.

dining — noun

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While 'dining', 'eating', 'dinner', and 'meal' all relate to consuming food, they differ in scope and usage. 'Dining' as a noun refers specifically to the activity of eating a meal, often with connotations of style, setting, or social experience — for example 'fine dining' suggests elegant surroundings and careful preparation. 'Eating' is much broader, covering any consumption of food from a quick snack to a formal meal. 'Dinner' names the main meal of the day, typically eaten in the evening, rather than the activity itself. 'Meal' is a general term for any occasion when food is eaten at a set time. For instance, 'We enjoyed fine dining at the French restaurant' emphasises the style and experience, while 'We had dinner at a French restaurant' states the event, and 'We ate at a French restaurant' focuses on the simple act of consuming food.

dining ↗eating ↗dinner ↗meal ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • fine dining
  • al fresco dining
  • outdoor dining
  • indoor dining
  • dining out

Prepositions

Etymology

Old FrenchLatinEnglish

'Dine' entered English from the Old French word 'diner', meaning 'to have the main meal of the day'. That word came from the Latin 'disjejunare', which literally meant 'to break one's fast' — to stop fasting and eat. Over time, the English gerund form 'dining' developed, used both as a present participle ('they were dining') and as a noun referring to the activity of eating a meal, especially in combinations like 'dining room' and 'fine dining'.