cafeteria
Americannoun
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a restaurant in which patrons wait on themselves, carrying their food to tables from counters where it is displayed and served.
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a lunchroom or dining hall, as in a factory, office, or school, where food is served from counters or dispensed from vending machines or where food brought from home may be eaten.
noun
Etymology
Origin of cafeteria
An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; from Latin American Spanish cafetería “café,” Spanish cafeter(a) “coffeemaker,” from French caf(f)etière (equivalent to café + etière feminine of -ier ); t apparently by analogy with words such as bouquetière “flower seller,” from bases ending in t ) + -ía; coffee, -ier 2
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.
The ground-floor auditorium was gutted, the cafeteria looted.
From BBC
Inspired by Grandmaster Flash, he began freestyling in his early teens, first to himself in the bathroom, then to anyone who would listen in the cafeteria.
From Los Angeles Times
In the cafeteria, an administrator noted that the meal plan delivered growing athletes 2,800 “protein dominant calories” daily.
The vegetable mélange of childhood pot pies and plastic school cafeteria trays.
From Salon
His members include special education and teacher aides, cafeteria works, custodians, gardeners and bus drivers.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
