lunch

[luhnch] / lʌntʃ /

NOUN

midday meal

Synonyms

STRONG

luncheon

WEAK

high tea snack tea

Frequently Asked Questions

What is another word for lunch?

The word lunch originally comes from a shortening of luncheon, which was once used to mean the same thing but now more specifically refers to a formal lunch held in connection with a meeting or other special occasion. Lunch is the midday meal, commonly eaten around noon (though later in some places). The time at which you eat lunch is called lunchtime. A late lunch is one eaten later than usual. Lunch isn’t always defined by the time it’s eaten, though. In some places, a midday meal is called dinner when it’s the main meal of the day. A light lunch is one that’s not too heavy or filling. A hot lunch is one that consists of hot foods, as opposed to cold food, like cold sandwiches. A packaged lunch provided at an event is often called a box lunch (or a boxed lunch). A lunch that you pack for yourself is often called a brown-bag lunch. The term bag lunch (or bagged lunch) can refer to one that’s provided or one that you packed yourself. The period allotted to eat lunch during a workday is called a lunch break or the lunch hour. In school, this is often called the lunch period. A business meeting conducted over lunch can be called a business lunch, a lunch meeting, or a power lunch. According to popular wisdom, there is no such thing as a free lunch. To do lunch means to meet someone for lunch. This is often called a lunch date. Brunch is a meal that’s like a combination of breakfast and lunch, typically eaten between breakfast time and lunchtime. A midmorning break for a snack—eaten after breakfast but before lunch—can be called elevenses (in reference to being eaten around 11 a.m.). In the U.K., the term high tea refers to a late afternoon or early evening meal similar to a light supper. Lunch can also be a verb, though this is quite formal and is much less commonly used. To lunch means to eat lunch, or to eat something specific for lunch, as in We lunched on sandwiches. More specifically, it can mean to engage in lunch as an activity, as in First we’ll visit the museum, then we’ll lunch, then we’ll see a show.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

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lunch lunches lunched lunching

It has been 10 years since Nick Curtola, the executive chef and partner at the Four Horsemen in Brooklyn, N.Y., started serving lunch Friday through Sunday at the restaurant—another that has never served brunch.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

She dislikes brunch and instead prefers having lunch by herself at the bar of a restaurant, where she can chat with the bartender and eavesdrop on others’ conversations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 12, 2026

Sure, each person might find their $25 lunch has been picked up by a mysterious benefactor.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

Saud survived until lunch but Babar perished 40 minutes before the interval - bowled by Tongue - gesticulating at the pitch.

From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026

I could tell her about talking to Oliver, the incident with Rachel at lunch, Harper telling me not to come back to the invisible table....Lorren would be sympathetic.

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows

The school had no toilet for female students and expired food packets were being used to prepare lunches.

From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026

School lunches, cleaning supplies and other needs associated with a lack of running water are up to parents to deal with.

From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026

On Sunday, I shall manufacture five identical lunches, and by Thursday afternoon I will apparently still be delighted to encounter a lentil-and-quinoa bowl.

From Salon ● Aug. 25, 2026

Dillon Davis and Nichols Neff were fed up with “corporate slop,” the bowl-centric meals that are a staple of sad office lunches.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

My mom places our camp-issued lunches on the compact table, sniffs the air, and rubs her nose.

From "Internment" by Samira Ahmed

They never divorced and lunched together almost daily.

From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2025

On our second date, we lunched at a Japanese restaurant, where he asked about my values and dreams.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2025

In the statement Monday noting Rubiales’ resignation, after Ceferin had lunched with the women delegates, there was praise but not words of solidarity toward the Spanish players or women’s soccer in general.

From Seattle Times ● Sep. 11, 2023

Then had come a break before the fourth round, so Scheffler and McIlroy and Jon Rahm and others had lunched together.

From Washington Post ● Aug. 28, 2022

I expected the room to be empty, nobody lunched generally before one o’clock.

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

The two leaders ended up getting on well, even lunching together at times, despite belonging to different camps, said a senior U.S. defense official.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026

Munir accompanied Sharif during a visit to Washington in June, lunching with Trump.

From Barron's ● Apr. 12, 2026

A walkway runs along the length of it, passing by a giant dinosaur skeleton, a beach volleyball pitch and dozens of Googlers lunching under the hazy November sun.

From BBC ● Nov. 19, 2025

Sims made the comment while he was lunching with Matt Troyka, a Democrat who voted for Kamala Harris in 2024.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2025

Later that day, I took Barack to lunch at the fancy restaurant on the first floor of our office building, a place packed with well-groomed bankers and lawyers power lunching over meals priced like dinners.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama

lunch

Frequently Asked Questions

Example Sentences

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