meal

1 of 3

noun (1)

1
: an act or the time of eating a portion of food to satisfy appetite
2
: the portion of food eaten at a meal

meal

2 of 3

noun (2)

1
: the usually coarsely ground and unbolted seeds of a cereal grass or pulse
especially : cornmeal
2
: a product resembling seed meal especially in particle size or texture

-meal

3 of 3

adverb combining form

: by a (specified) portion or measure at a time
piecemeal

Examples of meal in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
In addition to an in-house hair salon, three meals and social workers, Rainbow offers yoga and transportation to local Hindu temples. Justin Wm. Moyer, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024 Through free meals and food drives, the church fed its local community, as well as hungry families in the greater region, like California and Mexico. Juliana Kim, NPR, 24 Mar. 2024 According to the agency, those who landed in Orlando had access to numerous resources, including meals and water, lodging, transportation, basic health and medical screenings, phones and ID replacement services. CNN, 24 Mar. 2024 Some of the bamboo species grown in Uganda are imported from Asia, but many — like one whose shoots are smoked and then boiled to make a popular traditional meal in eastern Uganda — grow wild. Rodney Muhumuza, Quartz, 24 Mar. 2024 In the middle of the parking lot, the Louisville Fire Department, members of the Mayor's Office — including Mayor Craig Greenberg and Deputy Mayor David James — along with employees from Sysco gathered to share a meal under big, white tents. Eleanor McCrary, The Courier-Journal, 22 Mar. 2024 This has included delivering hot meals from a local Mexican restaurant and muffins from a bakery. Michael Kan, PCMAG, 22 Mar. 2024 Ringo lived in the recovery room until Miranda’s release a few days later, his vigil broken only when my wife and I took him out for walks and meals. David Frum, The Atlantic, 21 Mar. 2024 These ties to history dovetail nicely with the Akua founders’ habit of creating collections inspired by recollections of events and people; a meal shared, for example, or a book read (Blixen takes its name from the author of Out of Africa). Josefine Frank Arthur and Annika Zobel Agerled. Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'meal.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

Middle English meel appointed time, meal, from Old English mǣl; akin to Old High German māl time, Latin metiri to measure — more at measure

Noun (2)

Middle English mele, from Old English melu; akin to Old High German melo meal, Latin molere to grind, Greek mylē mill

Adverb combining form

Middle English -mele, from Old English -mǣlum, from mǣlum, dative plural of mǣl

First Known Use

Noun (1)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of meal was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near meal

Cite this Entry

“Meal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meal. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

meal

1 of 2 noun
1
: the food eaten or prepared for eating at one time
2
: the act or time of eating a meal

meal

2 of 2 noun
1
: ground seeds of a cereal grass
especially : cornmeal
2
: something like meal especially in texture
Etymology

Noun

Old English mæl "appointed time, meal"

Noun

Old English melu "ground grain"

Medical Definition

meal

noun
: the portion of food taken at one time to satisfy appetite

More from Merriam-Webster on meal

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