din·ner 
/ˈdɪnɚ/ noun
plural din·ners /ˈdɪnɚ/ noun 1 : the main meal of the day [count] ▪ We had many pleasant dinners together. ▪ a steak/lobster dinner [noncount] ▪ What's for dinner? ▪ They had dinner early. ▪ We're planning to ask them to dinner soon. ▪ Dinner is served. [=dinner is ready; it's time to come to the table for dinner] — often used before another noun ▪ dinner guests ▪ dinner rolls ▪ an enjoyable dinner companion ▪ My new boyfriend and I had a dinner date [=a date to eat dinner together] last night. ▪ She hosted a dinner party [=a party at which dinner is served] at her apartment. ▪ the dinner table [=the table where people eat dinner] ◊To go out to dinner is to have dinner at a restaurant.
▪ We haven't gone out to dinner in weeks. ▪ He took her out to dinner several times. 2 [count] : a usually large formal event at which dinner is eaten
▪ Two hundred people attended his retirement dinner. ▪ the club's annual dinner [=banquet] ▪ an awards dinner [=a dinner at which awards are given] 3 [count] : a cooked and packaged meal that usually only needs to be heated before it is eaten
▪ a frozen dinner — see also tv dinner
▪ We haven't gone out to dinner in weeks. ▪ He took her out to dinner several times.
usage Most Americans have dinner in the evening, although if the main meal of the day is served in the afternoon it is also referred to as dinner. When referring to the evening meal, dinner and supper are basically synonyms in U.S. English. Dinner is a somewhat more formal word than supper and it tends to describe a somewhat more formal meal.
▪ Two hundred people attended his retirement dinner. ▪ the club's annual dinner [=banquet] ▪ an awards dinner [=a dinner at which awards are given]
▪ a frozen dinner — see also tv dinner
