cater

verb

ca·​ter ˈkā-tər 

catered; catering; caters

intransitive verb

1

: to provide a supply of food

cater for a large party

2

: to supply what is required or desired

catering to middle-class tastes

transitive verb

: to provide food and service for

catered the banquet

caterer

ˈkā-tər-ər 

noun

Synonyms of cater

• feed
• board
• sustain
• serve

Examples of cater in a Sentence

The restaurant caters for parties.

A local restaurant catered the banquet.

The awards ceremony will be a catered event.

Recent Examples on the Web

Instead of catering to automobile traffic like typical intersection signal systems, Jung's invention adjusts crossing signal times based on the slowest pedestrian's pace. — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 26 June 2026

The Cassara caters to families near the theme park and the Flower Fields. — David Hochman, Forbes.com, 25 June 2026

Arencia may still be a newer discovery for many US shoppers, but in Korea, the brand has built a solid reputation around formulas that cater especially well to sensitive skin. — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 24 June 2026

By contrast, generations of pubs have catered to a broad swath of society, so many Melburnians enjoy eating out affordably as a matter of course. — Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 24 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

obsolete cater buyer of provisions, from Middle English catour, short for acatour, from Anglo-French, from acater to buy — more at cate

First Known Use

1580, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing cater

• cater-cousin
• cater for
• cater to

Rhymes for cater

• crater
• frater
• freighter
• gator
• grater
• greater
• hater
• krater
• later
• plater
• prater
• rater

Kids Definition

cater

verb

ca·​ter ˈkāt-ər 

1

: to provide a supply of food

cater for parties

2

: to supply what is wanted or needed

caterer

-ər-ər 

noun