cafeteria

1 of 2

noun

caf·​e·​te·​ria ˌka-fə-ˈtir-ē-ə 

1

: a restaurant in which the customers serve themselves or are served at a counter and take the food to tables to eat

2

: lunchroom sense 2

cafeteria

2 of 2

adjective

: providing a selection from which a choice may be made

cafeteria benefit plan

a cafeteria curriculum

Examples of cafeteria in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Among the Palestinian prisoners released were Mohammad Odeh, 52, and Wael Qassim, 54, accused of carrying out Hamas attacks against Israelis, including a bombing at a cafeteria at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2002 that killed nine people, including five U.S. citizens. —Compiled By Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 26 Jan. 2025

Among the 200 Palestinian prisoners released were Mohammad Odeh, 52, and Wael Qassim, 54, accused of carrying out deadly Hamas attacks against Israelis, including a bombing at a cafeteria at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 2002 that killed nine people, including five U.S. citizens. —Isabel Debre, Sam Mednick, TIME, 25 Jan. 2025

Adjective

Officials floated several ideas Monday on how to deal with lunchroom sizes, including allowing students to eat in non-cafeteria sites, younger students eating picnic style or high school juniors and seniors being allowed to leave the school campus for lunch. —Rafael Guerrero, chicagotribune.com, 15 June 2021

Word History

Etymology

Noun

American Spanish cafetería coffeehouse, from cafetera coffee maker, from French cafetière, from café

First Known Use

Noun

1894, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1908, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing cafeteria

• cafeteria-style

Kids Definition

cafeteria

noun

caf·​e·​te·​ria

ˌkaf-ə-ˈtir-ē-ə

1

: a restaurant in which the customers serve themselves or are served at a counter but carry their own food to their tables

2

: lunchroom