meal

noun

ˈmēl How to pronounce meal (audio)
Definition of mealnext
as in menu
food eaten or prepared for eating at one time all she wants to do is sit quietly after the large Thanksgiving meal

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of meal As the meal goes on and Rob seems to become increasingly inebriated, the night descends into nonsensical confrontations between Rob and the bartender, Rob and producers, Rob and his brother, and, finally, Rob and Michaella. — Zoe Papelis, Vulture, 28 Oct. 2026 In Paolo Veronese’s The Wedding at Cana (1563), the Louvre’s largest painting, a miniature brown-and-white lapdog stands on the biblical banquet table, partaking of the lavish meal set out for the guests. — Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026 Target is offering a Thanksgiving meal for six people for $30, or $5 per person. — ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026 This fund helps so many of our neighbors have a warm Thanksgiving meal, but the need for food is year-round. — Josh Taylor, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for meal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meal
  1. menu
  2. dinner
  3. lunch
  4. feed
  5. repast
  6. supper
Noun
  • There is a hospitality element too, with Burberry’s Tea & Coffee offering light meals with a menu that will be a contemporary take on traditional British favorites.
    — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Some staff have a deep knowledge of the menu, wine, and products, while others seem to still be in training.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of menu
Noun
  • Make no-knead pumpkin focaccia instead of dinner rolls or an easy three-ingredient curry pumpkin soup to start off your meal.
    — Jenn de la Vega, Bon Appetit Magazine, 27 Oct. 2026
  • She was supposed to be having dinner with another friend, who couldn’t make it in the end.
    — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of dinner
Noun
  • After Sarkozy was released from prison, last November, Kushner finally met him, for lunch.
    — Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026
  • Even small acts of help, like grabbing lunch for a busy team, going to the backroom to check inventory while your employee is helping a customer, or covering some calls in a busy customer service center, make a big difference.
    — Deborah Lovich, Fortune, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of lunch
Noun
  • That dream came true during the pandemic, when the two saw an opportunity to develop a hospitality concept that would remain true to the agricultural character of the property and feed people's ever-growing desire to be out in nature.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Oct. 2026
  • After drawing a penalty in overtime, Lekkerimäki received a cross-seam feed from Pettersson in the dying seconds of the overtime frame.
    — Thomas Drance, New York Times, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of feed
Noun
  • Detroit police are investigating a gunfight that left two men injured Saturday evening at a repast on the city's east side.
    — Nick Lentz, CBS News, 15 June 2026
  • In a larger context, this quintessentially Bengali phrase has come to mean a repast of tea and snacks that encompasses a tradition deeply ingrained in the culture.
    — Madhushree Basu Roy, Saveur, 30 Apr. 2026
Definition of repast
Noun
  • Chicken and Kielbasa Winter Stew This hearty supper soup takes just an hour to make.
    — Hannah Agran, Midwest Living, 27 Oct. 2026
  • The three-course supper could include beetroot tartare with goat's cheese, and lamb chops with aubergine puree, followed by pear-and-almond tart.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of supper

Browse Nearby Words

meagerness
meal
meals
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Meal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meal. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of Pyrrhic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All