I don't get it...what's the difference between tea, supper and dinner?

[sidesplittinglol]

Just that really.

Do people have all three or just two or?

[MikeUniformMike]

Tea - Eaten about 4 pm with a cup of tea. Sandwich and cake.
Supper - Evening meal eaten about 7 pm. Usually a lightish meal like beans on toast.
Dinner. Eaten about 1 pm. Meat and 2 veg type meal.

[ConfessorKahlan]

I think it depends entirely where you are.

Here in East Yorkshire, we have dinner at about mid-day and tea at is the main meal of the day eaten when we're in from work.

Supper is a snack before bed such as toast (but we don't really bother with that in our house).

[CatsCantFlyFast]

Living in the south - we have dinner (6/7/8pm depending on who, or circumstances) and supper (later, normally to top the kids up before bed)

Coming from the north we'd have dinner (lunchtime) and tea (evening)

[BikeRunSki]

For me (southern mum, northern dad, bought up in London):
Tea - drink and biscuit at 4pm
Supper - Evening meal at 7pm ish
Dinner - what you go out for in the evenings, or have at school in the middle of the day

For my DC (southern mum, northern dad, growing up in Yorkshire)
Tea - main meal, early evening
Supper - snack at bedtime
Dinner - meal in the middle of the day

[mayoli]

For me in Glasgow

Midday meal- Dinner if it's hot, piece if it's cold
Evening meal- Tea
Supper- fish/sausage 'n' chips (obviously not every night but I have never heard someone use 'supper' for anything other than that apart from my Welsh granny)

[CheeseCakeSunflowers]

Just to further confuse I have always referred to the people who serve the midday meal at school as dinner ladies never lunch ladies. As a child I would have called that meal dinner but now I would call it lunch.

[mayoli]

Oooh definetely @cheese. 'Lunch ladies' doesn't sound right to me!

[Mycarsmellsoflavender]

When it's just family, tea is between 3 and 4pm and supper is between 6 and 8 pm. We don't do dinner.

When I'm talking with other people, I refer to the evening meal as dinner and the afternoon tea as treat time so as to avoid confusion. Most people around here call their evening meal tea.

[Mummyoftwo91]

I eat breakfast lunch and dinner, never heard of this, where is this extra meal coming from I'm so confused 😂

[sidesplittinglol]

Thanks for your replies! So many different ones.

For me lunch is at midday

Tea is the drink unless it's for kids

Dinner is main meal at 7ish


Why is dinner at Midday and not an evening meal for some? Does it depend where you're from??

[CheesesOfNazereth]

Tea as a name for the evening meal sounds so wrong to me. Tea is a drink or an occasional treat with tiny cakes and sandwiches, its not an actual meal.

[greendale17]

Tea- 5pm - really old fashioned and I don't know anyone who says this

Dinner-6pm onwards. Same for supper

[thismeansnothing]

Dinner - what you have between midday and one
Tea - what you have between 5 and 6
Supper - brew n toast in your Jamie's while you watch Corrie 😂

[Eolian]

Regional and class-based. Tea, dinner and supper often all refer to the one evening meal, even though historically they referred to different types or timings of evening meal.
I call it dinner, my posh friend calls it supper and the people where I now live (NW) call it tea.

[thenightsky]

If dinner is in the evening why do schools have dinner ladies, eh? Dinner is mid day meal.

[chowmeinchick]

I thought dinner and tea was the same - about 5/6

Supper was like a Latish snack before bed.

[Copperspot]

West yorkshire gal here

Midday meal = dinner
Evening meal = tea

Supper is a snack before bed you have as a kid. Usually a slice of toast and drink of milk / hot choc in winter. Actually i think i may restart the supper thing

[Herbpatch]

Afternoon tea and high tea are entirely different things, though.

[Copperspot]

And if someone wants a drink of tea, it is a brew. So no confusion if someone invites you round for tea

[reallyanotherone]

Dinner= main meal, regardless of time of day.

Lunch = light meal, midday.
Tea= Light meal, evening.

Supper is just for posh people.

[stuntcamel]

Why is dinner at Midday and not an evening meal for some? Does it depend on where you're from? No, it probably depends on whether or not you happen to have your main hot meal in the middle of the day, and then a smaller/cold meal later on. It varies for us from day to day. Usually Sundays is when we have dinner at lunchtime, but on the other hand, we often call it 'Sunday Lunch' as well... and can sometimes be eaten at getting on for 4pm which is actually teatime... (this is getting quite confusing now)

DC1 had breakfast at about 11 today - hang on, should we have called that 'Elevenses'?

I give up

[mycatloveslego]

Totally depends where you're from.
Growing up dinner was around noon and tea was around 5. Supper was something posh southerners had.
Where I now live we have lunch at noon, dinner in the evening, tea is something you drink and supper? Still not sure about that one....!

[musicalmama]

My 2yo shouts "tea time everybody!!!" to summon the family to the table for our evening meal anytime between 5pm and 6.30pm.

You go out for dinner. Usually 7.30pm.

Supper is toast before your bed.

[sidesplittinglol]

Haha I never thought of that nightsky!
If dinner is at midday and tea is at 4pm etc, when is lunch?

[RoseVase2010]

Tea is around 4pm, a light meal.
Supper is your big standard evening meal.
Dinner is a more formal occasion.