Korean Job Discussion Forums

[spidey112233]

can anyone fror N.Z. or anywhere answer this? one of my students came back from N.Z. and she said they call dinner as "tea". since i'm from North America, i have no idea what she said at first. i doubted her haha, and then DID find it in the dictionary as a word for "dinner". Is this also common in Great Britain and Australia??

personally, i say dinner and supper. dinner=12:00 / supper=5:00 or so

[komtengi]

yes it is a common term in Aust, NZ... not sure about UK

[Dispatched]

Yup, used to call it 'Tea' back home (NZ).

Common phrases used...
'is it tea time yet?'
'what's for tea?'
'cook me some eggs!'

[hypnotist]

Yep, it's common in parts of the UK, too.

I'd use the following names for meals:

9am - Breakfast
11am - Mid-morning snack (or Brunch if appropriate)
1pm - Lunch
3pm - Afternoon tea (not a meal)
5pm - Dinner
7pm - Tea
9pm - Supper
11pm - Nightcap (liquid meal
1am - Kebab

IOW, dinner was something reserved for Sundays.

[Ya-ta Boy]

[Wangja]

Roughly speaking, working class folks in UK call the mid-day meal dinner and the evening meal tea whilst middle class folks use lunch and dinner.

But the correct usage of "dinner" is as the main meal of the day, which could be at lunchtime or early evening.

Old habits die hard and for me lunch is at 1 (preferably lasting till 2:30) and dinner is at 8 and should close out the evening at around 11 preferably with Armagnac and cigars. Damn, I miss Europe ....

[itaewonguy]

in new zealand and Australia we call it dinner time or tea time! we use both..
we dont use supper..

mum whats for tea? mum whens dinner ready?
IN a minute!!
cook me some eggs mum will ya!
YOU WANT EGGS!!!!!???? Ill give you F****KING EGGS!!
hahhahhahaha

but naa seriously..

tea means dinner..

and dinner means tea;
we use both!

[noelinkorea]

I'm from Southland in NZ - an area argely settled by Scottish folk, unlike in other parts of NZ.

For me - dinner is either a big meal for a special occasion (as menioned by someone else), or a hot (ie. cooked lunch) - I don't know if this second meaning extends to other parts of NZ [a non-cooked lunch would be called just 'lunch']. Tea is the evening meal as others have said, and of course it's also used for the beverage - context always makes it clear what we're refering to. 'Supper' is used as a word, but I ony know it to mean a snack before bedtime - like a late-night dessert or something. To say 'supper' for dinner would be really weird.

I have had similar experiences with the word 'college' - for me, it means a large high school (7 years instead of the regular 5) - often Catholic...elsewhere it seems to be synonym for 'univeresity', which we can also 'varsity' (slighty colloquial??).

[Swiss James]

as wangja says, only posh people call it "lunch" where I come from

[tzechuk]

[sheba]

Yep, we always said tea-time at home! Dinner was a special occasion... 'we are having a family dinner' (as in the all my aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents etc were coming), or 'lets go out for dinner' (to a restaurant).

If its a cup of tea, we specify, eg "would you like a cup of tea or coffee?"

Some of the older generation call lunch time "dinner". My grandfather's partner asked if I would be there for dinner and I said yes, then turned up at 5pm... she wasnt happy!

The only time Ive ever used 'supper' was at funerals (nibbles following the ceremony) or on camp (which was a hot drink and biscuites before bed).

A meal before 10 is breakfast.
a drink and snack between breakfast and lunch is 'morning tea'
10-11 meal is brunch (breakfast and lunch in one go)
12-2 is lunch (or dinner for the oldies)
2-5 drink and snack is 'afternoon tea'
5 onwards meal is tea.
And then we have pudding (not dessert)

Of course not everyone uses these terms.... and times are approx.

DISPATCHED said "cook me some eggs" yea and I will kick your butt!!

[spidey112233]

[spidey112233]

well, in canada, and im sure MOST canadians and americans would agree is the same, we basically have just 3-4 times we refer to eating. its strange and informative to hear what other native english speakers say. as for north america, basically, NOT all, say:

1. breakfast

2. brunch -11:00 or so

3. lunch, but in my case, dinner. also, dinner is NOT used for working class or older generations as some have referred to above. i mean EVERYONE basically says lunch or dinner - 12:00-2:00

those who use "lunch" for 12:00, would say dinner from anywhere between 5:00-8:00 or so. as for me, i say dinner for 12:00 and supper from anywhere between 5:00-8:00pm EXCEPT in korea coz they dont understand "supper" much. they basically say lunch-12:00 and then dinner-5:00-8:00 or whatever.

also, we say just snacks or afternoon snacks for food eaten quickly. and in canada/usa, we also use "dinner" for a special meal as well BUT during the normal weekdays too!

to my next problem (any advice??) :

i got this kid that told me about "tea" as dinner coz she studied in NZ and believe it or not, her brother studied in canada, so he calls it "dinner/supper". they basically are arguing which is right, haha! along with other minor details between the countries. i of course , side with him. just kidding! i just say both are right in their respected countries. if you go to canada, call it dinner, go to NZ call it tea. when in Rome........

[Sleepy in Seoul]

Yes, for the geographically unfortunate, "tea" does indeed refer to "that meal somewhere between 5pm and 8pm". It may also refer to a (prefereably hot) beverage - with or without milk and/or sugar - and a letter of the alphabet.

[spidey112233]