diner

noun

din·​er ˈdī-nər 

1

: a person who dines (as in a restaurant) or who is dining

2

a

: dining car

b

chiefly US : a typically small, informal, and inexpensive restaurant that has an extensive menu and that is often made from or designed to resemble a modified railroad dining car

had lunch at a roadside diner

Synonyms of diner

• restaurant

Examples of diner in a Sentence

we'll just grab a quick hamburger at the local diner

Recent Examples on the Web

When the popular Italian restaurant Caffe Vialetto closed in 2025 after 26 years of feeding families and sharing milestones, diners across Miami mourned the loss of the Coral Gables icon, a stable oasis for quiet dinners and family celebrations in a wildly changing culinary landscape. —Connie Ogle april 9, Miami Herald, 9 Apr. 2026

The dishes arrive simultaneously for all diners, creating an almost theatrical shared experience at bespoke hemlock-wood tables beneath floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the valley. —Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2026

This essential genre of restaurant is garnering more attention from chefs and diners around the world, with iterations springing up outside of Hong Kong in cities like Paris, New York, and Sydney. —Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Apr. 2026

In a flashback at the end of episode three, June meets Daisy at a diner and reveals the truth about Daisy’s adoptive parents’ connection to Mayday. —Max Gao, HollywoodReporter, 8 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1815, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing diner

• diner-out

Rhymes for diner

• finer
• liner
• miner
• minor
• schreiner
• seiner
• shiner
• shriner
• signer
• viner
• weiner
• airliner

Kids Definition

diner

noun

din·​er ˈdī-nər 

1

: one that dines

2

a

: dining car

b

: a restaurant in the shape of a railroad car