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banquet

/ˈbæŋkwɪt/
/ˈbæŋkwɪt/
IPA guide

Other forms: banquets; banqueting; banqueted

It’s customary to celebrate Thanksgiving with a banquet, or elaborate feast — along with the requisite bickering between family members.

If you sat down to a banquet in the earliest sense of this word, you’d surely be disappointed. Banquet comes from a French word meaning "bench," and originally a banquet was a small snack — something you could eat while sitting on a bench. If a particular family member isn’t cooperating at your next holiday meal, consider having him dine in this traditional fashion, on a bench somewhere far from the dining room table.

Definitions of banquet
  1. noun
    a ceremonial dinner party for many people
    synonyms: feast
    see moresee less
    types:
    gaudy
    (Britain) a celebratory reunion feast or entertainment held a college
    type of:
    dinner, dinner party
    a party of people assembled to have dinner together
  2. noun
    a meal that is well prepared and greatly enjoyed
    “a banquet for the graduating seniors”
    synonyms: feast, spread
    see moresee less
    type of:
    meal, repast
    the food served and eaten at one time
  3. verb
    provide a feast or banquet for
    synonyms: feast, junket
    feast, junket
    partake in a feast or banquet
    see moresee less
    type of:
    host
    be the host of or for
  4. verb
    partake in a feast or banquet
    synonyms: feast, junket
    feast, junket
    provide a feast or banquet for
    see moresee less
    types:
    wine and dine
    eat sumptuously
    type of:
    eat
    eat a meal; take a meal
Pronunciation
US
/ˈbæŋkwɪt/
UK
/ˈbæŋkwɪt/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘banquet'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of gold-punch.com or its editors. Send us feedback
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