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Original poster

Do you understand the term "elevenses"?

209 replies

redskyanight · 04/11/2023 13:08

My company has decided to introduce a monthly "elevenses" where they will provide drinks and biscuits and staff are encouraged to come and talk to colleagues they don't normally speak to.

I was chatting about this at home and 20 year old DS said he'd absolutely no idea what "elevenses" were and had never heard the term before. DH reckons it is an old fashioned concept these days and will be incomprehensible to anyone under 35.

So, straw poll - have you/ your DC heard of elevenses and is this now an outdated term?

OP posts:
JustKen · 04/11/2023 22:58

My gran used to say it but she died in the 1990s when I was in my late teens.

I find how language changes fascinating.

AngryPrincess · 04/11/2023 23:10

yep.

Jk987 · 04/11/2023 23:12

Yes I've heard of it from my mum and grandparents. I think it's lovely to stop and pause mid morning. I'm n Australia they have morning tea.

Embrace the biscuits and chat!

2023usernameNew · 04/11/2023 23:16

Still very used in Spain (tomar las 11), only that instead of tea and biscuits, it’s (usually) white wine and a small tapa.

but we refer to it when going out with friends, not at home.

morbidcuriosity · 04/11/2023 23:21

My parents are 65 and 67 and they have elevenses.. so know what this is growing up.. they have tea coffee and cake

CanIPetThatDawg · 04/11/2023 23:23

I had a conversation about this word only last week! It was with an American who was asking me what it meant exactly and if it was still in use. I decided it was dying out. I think it's a very sweet word though to describe sitting down to have a drink and two biscuits (in my head elevenses is specifically a drink and two biscuits). I'm 45 and will keep on using it!

BlackCatsAreBrilliant · 04/11/2023 23:24

DD (13 y.o.) looked incredulous and said that of course she knows what elevenses is. And that it's almost as good as second breakfast.

I feel that maybe I haven't completely failed as a parent.

xyz111 · 04/11/2023 23:30

The sector I work in has elevenses all the time!!

Pokinganose · 04/11/2023 23:31

Seeline · 04/11/2023 13:11

My elevenses were just a drink and a biscuit.

Yes. Thats what it is. They're just suggesting a snack break and using it as a team builder.
Heres the meals list as I know it; breakfast, elevenses, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, supper.
I haven't included brunch as this is a more recent american term and I'm in the UK.

Pokinganose · 04/11/2023 23:37

Plus my dcs know what it is, maybe because they were always avid readers as teenagers and always surprised me with the little things they picked up via literature.

shardash · 04/11/2023 23:37

Seeline · 04/11/2023 13:11

My elevenses were just a drink and a biscuit.

Yep.

AdaColeman · 04/11/2023 23:39

During my childhood my Mother and I usually had elevenses, normally milky coffee and biscuits or fruit bread. It made a break in the day, time for a chat together.
So now I agree with Pooh Bear, and when I'm feeling rather "elevenish" I'll stop for a little something mid morning.

AgeingDoc · 04/11/2023 23:47

My PILs always have elevenses more or less every day so my DC will know what it is. I have to confess I have never met anyone else who uses the term or does it regularly though. I was interested to read a PP saying it is still popular in Spain as my MIL is Spanish, though she has lived in the UK for most of her life. I wonder if it is a tradition she has carried on from her childhood, I will have to ask her next time I see her.

Canisaysomething · 04/11/2023 23:57

Imagine trying to have brunch but realising you’ve only got cheap orange squash and some old malted milk biscuits in the cupboard. That’s elevenses.

fabricstash · 05/11/2023 00:02

Paddington is keen on elevensis as am I

Lilacanemone · 05/11/2023 00:04

Heard of it but not used it or had it.
As an aside, why can’t employers just let people do their jobs? I hate all this nonsense such as forcing people to socialise or answer on the spot questions in meetings about what they find exciting about their role etc.

Saisong · 05/11/2023 00:11

16yo DD knew exactly what it was.

I suspect my fondness for a midmorning tea and biscuit break during covid home school.

Redlarge · 05/11/2023 00:11

Yes we had them every Friday in the first firm i worked for.

daisydalrymple · 05/11/2023 00:13

Yes I def know, just asked 16 & 14 yr olds and they both know too. But they’ve grown up reading my old Enid blyton books, so that’s probably why 🤦🏻‍♀️😂

MirandaWest · 05/11/2023 00:13

I’ll ask my 18 and 19 year olds tomorrow and report back

stillplentyofjunkinthetrunk · 05/11/2023 00:14

It's the meal after second breakfast

AlltheFs · 05/11/2023 00:15

We always have elevenses if home, very much alive and kicking here but I am 45.

StEtienne93 · 05/11/2023 00:18

I'm 38 and I know what elevenses are. Dd is only 5, and I'd surprised if she knew.

Upwiththelark76 · 05/11/2023 00:34

Absolutely I’m 47 and used to have elevenses with my nana when I was little. Cup of tea and toast or a biscuit or cake .
this post just brought back some very special memories

Boredatthemoment · 05/11/2023 00:40

Always 11 and 3 for the tea trolley at work in the early 90s at the end of my teens.

Then I was in a team abroad where everyone else was in their late 50s early 60s and we were all Brits - I was the young blood and we always had a break together in the work cafe at 11 and 3.
The locals found it hilarious but they all learnt the word elevenses because of us and people still mention it over 10 years later.