meal
meal Lexical Profile
meal Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The food eaten or prepared for a specific eating occasion, such as breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
"We enjoyed a delicious three-course meal at the new Italian restaurant."
An occasion or designated time when people sit down to eat.
"They decided to discuss the business proposal over a formal evening meal."
The edible part of a grain or pulse ground to a coarse powder, typically less finely ground than flour.
"The baker mixed the oat meal with warm water and honey to prepare the dough."
Word Nuance & Usage
The word functions as a countable noun when referring to a dining occasion or the food served (e.g., 'three meals a day'), but operates as an uncountable noun when referring to ground grain (e.g., 'a sack of cornmeal').
• Rhymes for meal
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Derived from two distinct Old English roots: 'mǣl' meaning a fixed time or occasion for eating (from Proto-Germanic *mēlą), and 'melu' meaning ground grain (from Proto-Germanic *melwą, related to grinding).
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.