Luncheonettes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small informal restaurant or café that primarily serves light meals and snacks during lunch hours
2. An establishment offering a casual dining experience, typically featuring simple meals and beverages for lunchtime patrons
3. A type of eatery where customers can enjoy a quick and informal lunch, often with a limited menu focused on sandwiches and salads

Etymology: Luncheonettes is simply the plural of "luncheonette," and the word is a compound of "luncheon" and the suffix "-ette." The suffix traces back through Old French and Middle English to Latin "-ittus," a diminutive ending that made something smaller or more modest than the base word it was attached to. That is why "-ette" often signals a small or lesser version of a thing, as in "kitchenette" or "cigarette." "Luncheon" itself goes back to the Middle English "lunchin," a word for a light meal, with the sense of a midday snack, and the "-ette" ending marks the establishment as a small, informal version of that meal. The word was formed in English from these existing parts, so its history is a matter of combining familiar elements rather than borrowing a foreign term.

Synonyms: cafés, bistros, diners, restaurants, eateries