We should have dinner together next week

[Alexie]

Hello,

I'd like to ask you to explain me the meaning of the title phrase "We should have dinner together next week". I got this as an answer to my suggestion to "meet up for a chat" from a friend of mine, an abroad exchange student (Benelux) who has been studying at our university for a month.

The whole context is the following.
"We should have dinner together next week. Perhaps on monday before the party (then you can join the party as well)? Or on tuesday evening?
Other days are also fine by me. I don't have any plans yet, so just propose something!"

I'm not sure about the meaning of the word "dinner". Is it meant literally, like "having food in a restaurant while having chat"? Or is it just a "small talk" phrase, meaning "yes we should meet up", no matter where.

I tried to look it up in all dictionaries accesible to me. But no answer at all.
Would be gratful for an answer with explanation. I'm really curious.

Thanks a lot
Alexie

[sarat_106]

Hello,

I'd like to ask you to explain me the meaning of the title phrase "We should have dinner together next week". I got this as an answer to my suggestion to "meet up for a chat" from a friend of mine, an abroad exchange student (Benelux) who has been studying at our university for a month.

The whole context is the following.
"We should have dinner together next week. Perhaps on monday before the party (then you can join the party as well)? Or on tuesday evening?
Other days are also fine by me. I don't have any plans yet, so just propose something!"

I'm not sure about the meaning of the word "dinner". Is it meant literally, like "having food in a restaurant while having chat"? Or is it just a "small talk" phrase, meaning "yes we should meet up", no matter where.

I tried to look it up in all dictionaries accesible to me. But no answer at all.
Would be gratful for an answer with explanation. I'm really curious.

Thanks a lot
Alexie

The meals eaten at different times of the day are called breakfast, lunch and dinner. You will find the general meaning of these three terms in any standard dictionary as follows:
Breakfast; a meal eaten in the morning as the first meal of the day
Lunch: a meal that is eaten in the middle of the day
Dinner: the main meal of the day, usually the meal you eat in the evening
Of course, This practice varies from country to country. For example; in Britain, dinner is the meal eaten in the middle of the day.

We should have dinner together next week= You must take your meal with your friend either in the evening or at noon (according to prevailing practice of your country)

[Raymott]

Hello,

I'd like to ask you to explain me the meaning of the title phrase "We should have dinner together next week". I got this as an answer to my suggestion to "meet up for a chat" from a friend of mine, an abroad exchange student (Benelux) who has been studying at our university for a month.

The whole context is the following.
"We should have dinner together next week. Perhaps on monday before the party (then you can join the party as well)? Or on tuesday evening?
Other days are also fine by me. I don't have any plans yet, so just propose something!"

I'm not sure about the meaning of the word "dinner". Is it meant literally, like "having food in a restaurant while having chat"? Or is it just a "small talk" phrase, meaning "yes we should meet up", no matter where.

I tried to look it up in all dictionaries accesible to me. But no answer at all.
Would be gratful for an answer with explanation. I'm really curious.

Thanks a lot
Alexie

It means to literally sit down and have an evening meal with your friend.
You suggested getting together for a chat. You friend replied (in effect), Yes, that sounds great. In fact, why don't we relax over a meal and maybe a bottle of wine .

Basically it's a positive response to your suggestion, with the suggestion of an additional chance of intimacy (You don't say whether your friend is of the opposite sex - that is one connotation of suggesting 'dinner'. But plain friends can have dinner together as well). It doesn't necessarily mean at a restaurant. Your friend might be offering to cook for you at their home.

[Tdol]

Of course, This practice varies from country to country. For example; in Britain, dinner is the meal eaten in the middle of the day.

Not really- some do use the term 'dinner' for the mid-day meal, but it's by no means the standard term nationwide, and is regional. 'Dinner' was used to denote the main meal of the day, and among the poorer groups, this was usually the lunchtime meal, with tea or supper later. However, this usage was frowned upon by many, possibly out of snobbery because of its association with poverty. It does survive in the term 'dinner ladies'. If someone said that you should do dinner together, it is highly unlikely that they are inviting you to lunch.

[Alexie]

Thank you all for your answers, especially the Raymott's one as it really gets to the heart of the matter.

Alexie