Dining

Part of speech: verb, noun

Pronunciation: /ˈdaɪnɪŋ(ɡ)/

Definitions

1. The act or process of eating a meal, typically in a social or formal setting
2. Engaging in consuming food usually at a table and often with others
3. The activity of having a meal, often emphasizing the setting or manner of eating

Etymology: The most surprising thing about "dining" is that its root meant "to break a fast." Latin "ieiūnus" meant "fasting," and adding the prefix "dis-" gave a verb for ending that abstinence. Late Latin speakers used this to describe the first meal of the day, and the sense of breakfast survived in the Vulgar Latin form "disiūnāre," which passed into Old French as "disner." Old French "disner" then came to mean the main meal of the day, which is the sense English inherited. Middle English borrowed it as "dynen," and the meaning shifted with it: a word that began as the act of breaking a fast ended up naming the formal, midday or evening meal rather than breakfast. "Dining" is simply the present participle and gerund of "dine," so it carries the same history and the same meaning of eating a meal.

Synonyms: eating, feasting, banqueting