AIBU, the MIL iinvites us to dinner but gives us lunch

[Greensmiff]

We are having meat and rolls, my DH's favourite. But it's lunch not dinner, or is it just me?

I agree with ThumbWitchesAbroad. When I was a kid, we referred to the mid-day meal as "dinner" but it was a hot meal.

BTW when I was a kid I lived South East and it was breakfast, lunch, dinner. Now I live up North and breakfast, dinner, tea is much more common even though most people have their main meal in the evening.

Anyway we've all missed the most important question - is the meat naice ham?

The midday meal is called dinner. Therefore, you have the correct food. So YOU are being unreasonable, not your MIL.
The evening meal is tea.

Breakfast
Lunch
Supper, unless it's with guests in which case it's dinner.

That's it.

No such thing as lunch as its breakfast, dinner and tea

What Derek said! Obviously a Yorkshire bird like myself...

I am now confused. If i have salad for my evening meal (cold) what do i call it? I would say it was my dinner. Is it my lunch (no) or tea? I sometimes have salad for lunch too. If i eat soup (hot) for lunch am i having dinner? It's a minefield.

Yes we do need to know more about the meat actually.

I'm imagining ham or corned beef? But am prepared to hear that a full platter of different meats was offered.

Was there a little side salad involved at all?

So you are saying Dinner can't be salad? And what about High Tea?

I have breakfast, lunch and dinner and the thought of whats served doesn't really enter into it - if I go out and have a substantial lunch then dinner can be sandwiches or a light snack.

Supper??? That is ovaltine and a slice of toast eaten by my parents because they have their tea/dinner/evening meal at 5pm and are starving by bed time.

Yes, supper is the light snack before bed - usually in the form of cereal, or toast or crumpets or something.

Meat and rolls? What even is that? Do you mean like a ham or corned beef in a bap or something? Whether or not it's lunch or supper depends entirely upon the time of day, but it could never be dinner.

My point being that it's the time of day that determines whether it's lunch or dinner, not the food served.

cdtaylor no salad can't be dinner. Salad served in the evening is tea.

We have breakfast lunch and dinner, then supper is what we have before bed I'm in N.I.

I am with all those who say supper is a light snack before bed, but I know lots of (posh) people who habitually call their casual weeknight evening meal supper instead of dinner because dinner denotes something more formal, involving courses and silverware, or eating out, or entertaining.

But my evening meal is always dinner at around 7, which usually means it's a cooked meal, but it might be a salad. What it wouldn't be is a sandwich or cheese and biscuits.

If I didn't want to eat a proper 'dinner' and I just fancied a tin of soup or a sandwich then I'd probably call that supper, even if I ate it earlier in the evening, but technically supper for me would usually mean be a lump of cheese and a couple of digestives or something similarly quick and light at around 10pm.

Unless that soup or sandwich or egg on toast is really early in the evening, like 6pm, then it would be high tea.

Which is not the same afternoon tea. Not the same at all.

At lunchtime i have my dinner. At dinner time i have my tea

As a precious poster said the family will ask what's for dinner, and i'll tell them their tea is ready.

The words Dinner Time suggests mid-day to me, 'Dinner Ladies' at school, etc... Lunch is also mid-day. Aaarrggh.

Supper is something i would expect very late in the evening. A meal other than lunch, dinner or tea.

As for the OP - If i was invited to someones house for dinner at mid-day i would be prepared for anything. Dinner in the evening - a hot meal expected.

Londoner, if it makes a difference.

OP, are you a vegetarian? just wondered if there is more to this.

Shock horror, mother wants to give her son his favourite meal!!

If it's food I haven't had to prepare, I'm winning!

My DS just ate a ham sandwich and it was definitely dinner.
We'll have our tea later.

But that's beside the point, there's no right or wrong. If MIL has invited you round and fed you, that's a good thing! Was it a nice cold beef butty? Side salad?

We're in Germany & it's easy here-breakfast, midday meal & evening meal!

I would expect anyone who says "the MIL" to have dinner at mid day.

[snob emoticon]