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round of drinks

round of drinks

8 2.9
A set of drinks bought for everyone in a group at the same time
  • noun
translation icon : ronda de bebidas
  • We'll have time for one round of drinks.
  • buy a round of drinks
  • order a round of drinks
  • get a round of drinks

But yeah, it was just it because I was first to buy rounds of drinks at the bar.

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Examples

Synonyms

round
vsround of drinks
  • Informal
107 4.2

A serving of drinks bought for everyone in a group

is used more broadly for purchased drinks across various social situations
a round of
vsround of drinks
  • Informal
10 3.5

A set of drinks bought for everyone, with people taking turns to pay

focuses on the turn-taking custom rather than just a single purchase

How Many

round of drinks
8 2.9
drink combo
  • US
2.0
drink
1.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

round + of + drink

The phrase is compositional: 'round' has a specific sense 'a serving for everyone present' and combined with 'drinks' yields the meaning 'a set of drinks for the group.' This pattern (buying a 'round' of drinks) is common in English and has clear parallels in other languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words and senses should be able to infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The phrase round of drinks comes from pubs where someone would buy one round by going around the table and giving drinks to everyone at the same time. So a round of drinks means 'a set of drinks bought for the whole group' and often that it is someone's 'turn' to pay.