diner
diner Lexical Profile
diner Game Scores & Validity
• noun
North American A small, inexpensive, informal restaurant typically featuring a long counter, booths, and a broad menu of classic American comfort foods, often housed in a prefabricated structure resembling a streamlined railroad car.
"After the late-night concert, they stopped at a roadside diner for pancakes and coffee."
A person who is eating a meal, especially as a paying customer in a restaurant.
"The chef came out of the kitchen to greet every diner in the crowded room."
North American A railroad car equipped with tables and a kitchen in which meals are served to passengers during a train journey.
"We walked three cars forward to the diner to enjoy lunch while watching the mountains pass by."
Word Nuance & Usage
Do not confuse 'diner' (with one 'n', meaning a restaurant or a person eating) with 'dinner' (with two 'n's, meaning the main meal of the day).
• Rhymes for diner
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in Middle English as an agent noun from the verb 'dine' (from Old French 'disner', meaning to eat the main meal). The American sense referring to a roadside restaurant evolved in the late 19th century as a shortening of 'dining car', as early lunch wagons were modeled after or converted from railroad passenger cars.