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formal dinner

formal dinner

4 3.3
A dinner where guests wear very smart clothes and follow strict manners
  • noun
  • Formal
translation icon : cena formal
  • Well, whenever a great leader visits the White House, they give a formal dinner.

Examples

  • Once he arranged for me to be invited to a formal dinner at the University of Chicago in honor of his friend John Sparrow, then the Warden of All Souls College, Oxford.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The job will officially change hands from outgoing Commissioner James Gordon... to incoming Ellen Yindel at a formal dinner this evening.

  • And just in time for our formal dinner at the club.

  • A group of people attend a very formal dinner party.

  • The last time was two weeks ago, at a formal dinner on a cruise ship!

    Blog text (4)
  • Now, in regard to this evening, Lord Cizante suspects that you and your friends might find a formal dinner somewhat tedious.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • She is dancing at a formal dinner, a fundraiser for the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society.

    Fiction book (1996)
  • Austin and Vanessa are on the top deck of an open-air double-decker English bus having a full-course formal dinner.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • National leaders in industry, performing arts, and government, along with MENC's National Executive Board and Advisory Council, will be attending a formal dinner benefiting MENC's Fund for the Advancement of Music Education (FAME) on March 13.

    Academic text (1997)
  • The guests arrived dressed elegantly for the formal dinner held at the prestigious venue.

Synonyms

dinner
vsformal dinner
  • Formal
639 1.0

A formal meal in the evening where people meet for social or business reasons

requires guests to follow strict dress and etiquette at the seated meal
reception
vsformal dinner
167 3.3

A formal party after a ceremony to welcome guests

is held mainly as a welcome after ceremonies rather than as an etiquette-driven seated meal
feast
vsformal dinner
162 1.9

A large special meal with many foods for a celebration

is about large celebratory meals with less focus on strict dress or etiquette
banquet
vsformal dinner
  • Formal
114 3.9

A large formal meal for many people to celebrate a special event

is a smaller meal focused on strict dress and etiquette rather than large celebration
dinner party
vsformal dinner
75 1.0

An event where people are invited to eat dinner together

requires stricter dress and etiquette than a casual hosted evening meal
function
vsformal dinner
  • Formal
74 4.2

A formal social event such as a party or ceremony

is focused on strict dress and etiquette at a seated meal rather than official duties
social occasion
vsformal dinner
3 2.8

An event where people meet to celebrate or spend time together

is specifically a seated meal with strict dress and etiquette rather than any important event
gala affair
vsformal dinner
  • Formal
1 6.0

A fancy formal party with entertainment to celebrate or raise money

focuses more on show and entertainment than strict dress and seated etiquette
social affair
vsformal dinner
  • Formal
3.8

A formal party or ceremony where many people meet

focuses on strict dress and seated etiquette rather than being any general gathering

How Formal

to banquet
  • Formal
1 4.5
formal dinner
  • Formal
4 3.3
black-tie
  • Formal
11 4.4

Surface Forms

formal dinner singular

Morphology

formal + dinner

The meaning is directly compositional: 'formal' (ceremonious, requiring specific dress/etiquette) modifies 'dinner' (an evening meal), so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer an event with formal dress/behaviour. This construction is semantically regular and common across languages, making the phrase immediately understandable from its parts.

Etymology

Formal dinner comes from a simple picture: formal means special and following rules, and dinner is an evening meal where guests wear suits or gowns and use careful manners. So, the phrase means an event where people are expected to 'dress' and 'behave' in a formal way.