Definition

1. Verb:
   • To eat a meal away from one's home, typically at a restaurant or at another person's residence.

Usage

• The verb "dine out" is used to describe the act of going to a restaurant or to someone else's house for a meal. It implies a deliberate choice to eat a meal outside of one's own home, often for social, celebratory, or convenience reasons. It is an intransitive verb (it does not take a direct object).

Examples

• Verb:
  • We decided to dine out to celebrate our anniversary.
  • I'm too tired to cook tonight; let's dine out.
  • They frequently dine out at new restaurants in the city.

Advanced Usage

• "to dine out on something": To gain social prestige or repeated invitations by telling a story or anecdote.
  • He dined out on that story about meeting the president for months.

Variants and Related Words

• Dine (verb): To eat dinner.
  • We will dine at seven o'clock.
• Diner (noun): A person who dines, or a small, often informal restaurant.
• Dining (noun): The activity of eating a meal.

Synonyms

• Eat out: To have a meal at a restaurant.
• Dine away from home: A more formal way to express the same idea.

Phrasal Verbs

• Dine out on: As noted in Advanced Usage, this phrasal verb means to use a story or experience for social advantage.
  • She could dine out on her travel adventures for years.

Related Idioms

• "To make a meal of it": While not directly using "dine out," this idiom relates to making something more elaborate or difficult than necessary, often in the context of an event or task that could be simple.

Verb

1. eat at a restaurant or at somebody else's home