Tea (in reference to food, rather than the drink) has long been used as an umbrella term for several different meals. Independent Premium Comments can be posted by members of our membership scheme, Independent Premium. In most opulent houses, however, coffee and light pastries of all kinds are added, many of which are unknown in Paris, preserved or candied fruits, macaroons, biscuits, nougat, and even ice cream.]. Tea, meaning a main meal for adults, is the word used in some parts of Britain, especially when the evening meal is eaten early. In addition to the hard core tea addicts, many people, in general, have the habit of drinking tea after meals. This is how the country refers to their evening meal, Everything Roger Federer eats for breakfast, lunch and dinner, How we should actually eat scones, according to the Queen, You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully, Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable, Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties, We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification. As may be expected, “dinner” was the overwhelmingly preferred term used in the South, while those in the North preferred to say “tea”. Another word for tea. However, the study didn’t just examine which word was most favoured across the country, it also looked into how answers varied according to geographical region. and this was known as ‘High Tea’. Due to the sheer scale of this comment community, we are not able to give each post the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate. High Tea is a name for the evening meal, usually associated with the working class, and is typically eaten between 5 pm and 7 pm. The results revealed that “dinner” was the most popular word, with 57 per cent of the participants choosing it over the others. Anna Maria, Duchess of Bedford, is widely credited with inventing afternoon tea in England as a late-afternoon meal whilst visiting Belvoir Castle in Leicestershire. Around the second World War, the drinks were served by the workplace's tea lady, a position that is now almost defunct. Mais, dans la plupart des maisons opulentes, on y ajoute du café, des pâtisseries légères de toute espèce, et dont plusieurs sont même inconnues à Paris, des fruits confits ou glacés, des macarons, des biscuits, du nougat, et même jusqu’à des glaces. It may equally involve coffee, and almost inevitably, biscuits. ", "On Glasgow and Edinburgh, By Robert Crawford", "Crunch time: why Britain loves a good biscuit", "It's love in the afternoon as Australians lap up 'high' tea", "History of the afternoon tea tradition from China", "Chapter XIII: Teas and Other Afternoon Parties", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tea_(meal)&oldid=996212228, Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 25 December 2020, at 05:07. Moreover, 74 per cent of the middle class and 70 per cent of working class that hail from the South use the term “dinner”. By the end of the 19th century, afternoon tea developed in its current form and was observed by both the upper and middle classes. This article is instead concerned with the various types of secondary, lighter, meals called "tea". Just over a third of the participants preferred the use of the word “tea”, while only five per cent referred to the meal as “supper”. For the beverage, see, "Tea time" redirects here. In Australia and New Zealand, a small informal social gathering usually at someone's home for tea and a light meal (i.e. [13] This differentiation in usage is one of the classic social markers of English (see U and non-U English). A clue to the historical role of supper is given in its etymology. Dictionary.com confirms, “dinner” doesn’t necessarily refer to a specific time of day. A filet mignon dinner with mashed potato, string beans and mushrooms. In contrast, Fiona takes a more pragmatic approach: ‘dinner’ is the main meal whether taken midday or in the evening. More than half of middle class northerners call the evening meal “tea”, alongside 67 per cent of the northern working class. Tea definition, the dried and prepared leaves of a shrub, Camellia sinensis, from which a somewhat bitter, aromatic beverage is prepared by infusion in hot water. The custom of taking afternoon tea with bread or pastry was also common in some continental European areas, though such customs are not widely known in English-speaking countries. It usually consists of scones, clotted cream, strawberry jam, plus, of course, tea to drink. Tea, Dinner or Supper? However, in most of the South of England, the midday meal is almost universally called "lunch", with "dinner" being the evening meal, regardless of social class. Dinner sounds more formal than supper, and guests generally receive invitations to ‘dinner’ rather than to ‘supper’. YouGov carried out a survey of 42,000 people from across the country in order to determine how they refer to the evening meal. [2] Tea as a meal is associated with Great Britain, Ireland, and some Commonwealth countries. However, when the workers returned home, they would enjoy a lighter meal of breads, muffins etc. [12] In most of the United Kingdom (namely, the North of England, North and South Wales, the English Midlands, Scotland, and some rural and working class areas of Northern Ireland) people traditionally call their midday meal dinner and their evening meal tea (served around 6 pm), whereas the upper social classes would call the midday meal lunch or luncheon and the evening meal (served after 7 pm) dinner (if formal) or supper (if informal). For all classes and regions, supper usually means a late-night snack or meal, but some people use the term for the early evening meal if they have already had their dinner at midday. Please continue to respect all commenters and create constructive debates. Her statement on TV show Britain’s Best Home Cook sparked a huge debate on Twitter, with one person stating: “The Queen of baking has spoken.". The sandwiches are usually crustless, cut into small segments, either as triangles or fingers, and pressed thin. While some may assume that the distinction between the two words comes down to class, YouGov has pointed out that geographical location is a more crucial factor. The Duchess asked that a tray of tea, bread and butter (some time earlier, the Earl of Sandwich had had the idea of putting a filling between two slices of bread) and cake be brought to her room during the late afternoon. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Both supper and dinner have closely related verbs in English: sup and dine. Afternoon tea is a light meal typically eaten between 3:30 pm and 5 pm. Afternoon teas are often held outside the private home in commercial tea rooms, function venues, hotels, or similar. This was also sometimes called a "meat-tea" in the past. Our journalists will try to respond by joining the threads when they can to create a true meeting of independent Premium. {{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}, Dinner or tea? To dine with a number of people (more than two) denotes petty bickering and quarreling. A list of significant tea houses in Britain gives more examples. The philosopher Thomas Carlyle and his wife invited guests for 7 pm to their teas in the 1850s, although afternoon tea before dinner was also becoming established by this time.[3]. Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate? Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines. tea shops and Lyons Corner Houses were successful chains of such establishments, and played a role in opening up possibilities for Victorian women. It allows our most engaged readers to debate the big issues, share their own experiences, discuss real-world solutions, and more. [17] A BBC Radio 4 comedy series of this name was made by Graeme Garden and Barry Cryer. The earliest "tea" meals were often in the early evening, some three or four hours after dinner, or even later, after a supper and before bed. To dine alone or with your family means you will be forgiving someone or receiving forgiveness from someone. And when I come out to the dining room, I don't see a cup of tea, I see dinner. ", "(Name of relative) is coming for tea", "Tea's on the table" etc. You can also choose to be emailed when someone replies to your comment. In Australia and New Zealand, a small informal social gathering usually at someone's home for tea and a light meal (i.e. [1] Teatime is the time at which the tea meal is usually eaten, which is late afternoon to early evening, being the equivalent of merienda. The evening meal in her household was served fashionably late at eight o’clock, thus leaving a long period of time between lunch and dinner. In both Australia and New Zealand, a smoko, originally meaning a cigarette break, is also used as slang for a tea break, especially for people working in manual work. You can find our Community Guidelines in full here. Observance of the custom originated amongst the wealthy social classes in England in the 1840s,[5] as the time of dinner moved later. High tea would be served at dinner table whereas low tea would not be served at the dinner table but on low tables within the drawing room. Of the many indicators of social class in Britain one of the most common is the choice of meals and names for these meals. It's been a debate from both a regional and a class-based perspective, but because "tea" also refers to an afternoon repast, the lines get a bit blurry. When used in this context, it is eaten early evening and will often the main meal of the day on returning home from work. Afternoon tea is a British food tradition of sitting down for an afternoon treat of tea, sandwiches, scones, and cake. Happiness or sadness, stress or celebration, the answer to everything is a cup of heavenly delight. As a verb tea is to drink tea. A.B.C. Are you sure you want to delete this comment? Afternoon teas are often held outside the private home in commercial tea rooms, function venues, hotels, or similar.[19]. The term high tea has been incorrectly used to describe the more formal event that is afternoon tea; however, it’s properly called afternoon tea, or low tea. Dinner: This is dinner and eaten from early to the late evening, used in the same way around the world. "It's tea time", "It's time for tea!" [citation needed], This article is about meals referred to as "Tea". [Towards five o'clock in the evening, the mistress of the house, in the midst of the sitting-room, makes tea herself, very strong and barely sweetened with a few drops of rich cream; generous slices of buttered bread accompany it. tea is usually about someone you know, but can also extend to celebrities random internet scandals, etc. The term "tea" meaning a full evening meal, as opposed to a light afternoon snack with tea and cake or cookies, is never used in the United States, and most Americans are completely unaware that anyone would ever use the word with this meaning. It can just mean that you are hungry. Vocabulary and Social Class. These used to be common in the UK, but these establishments have declined in popularity since the Second World War. According to the report, competition was very tight in the Midlands, with people living in Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Herefordshire and Shropshire only slightly more likely to describe the meal as “tea”. What Is an Afternoon Tea? When I was a child ‘dinner’ was the light meal in the middle of the day, whereas ‘tea’ was the main meal at around 6 o’clock. Want an ad-free experience?Subscribe to Independent Premium. biscuits, scones, or slices of cake or sandwiches) in the afternoon is referred to as "afternoon tea." As nouns the difference between teaand dinner is that teais (uncountable) the dried leaves or buds of the tea plant, while dinneris the main meal of the day, often eaten in the evening. In Australia and New Zealand the evening meal is still often called tea, whereas the midday meal is now commonly called lunch. Not a meal as such, but a chance to "down tools" (or get away from the computer) and relax from work for 10–15 minutes. For example, Alexandre Balthazar Laurent Grimod de La Reynière wrote in 1804 of afternoon tea in Switzerland: Vers les cinq heures du soir, la maîtresse de la maison fait elle-même, au milieu du salon, du thé très-fort, qu’adoucissent à peine quelques gouttes d’une crème onctueuse; de larges tartines de pain beurré l’accompagnent. [8][9][10] Afternoon tea as a treat may be supplemented with a glass of Champagne or a similar alcoholic drink. For a tea lover, nothing in the world can be more gratifying than a cup of tea. The British and Irish habit of dunking biscuits in tea has been exported around the globe.[18]. This is a more recent innovation. This is the ancient interpretation of this dream. The most insightful comments on all subjects will be published daily in dedicated articles. Until the late 18th century dinner was eaten at what we now call "lunchtime", or in the early afternoon; supper was a later and lighter meal. For the Cantonese Chinese practice of "drinking tea", see, Australian and New Zealand usages of "tea", p. 209, Pool, Daniel (1993) "What Jane Austen Ate and Charles Dickens Knew", Touchstone/Simon & Schuster, New York, A list of significant tea houses in Britain, Alexandre Balthazar Laurent Grimod de La Reynière, "Tea with Grayson Perry. In Australia, this is commonly referred to as Devonshire Tea. The term high tea has been incorrectly used to describe the more formal event that is afternoon tea; however, it’s properly called afternoon tea, or low tea. However, few prove as divisive as the question of how best to describe the last meal of the day. Scones (with clotted cream and jam) may also be served (as they are for cream tea). the best kind of gossip, typically shared between friends. Definition and synonyms of dinner / tea etc is up from the online English dictionary from Macmillan Education.. Find more ways to say tea, along with related words, antonyms and example phrases at Thesaurus.com, the world's most trusted free thesaurus.
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