cafeteria

[ kaf-i-teer-ee-uh ]

noun

1. a restaurant in which patrons wait on themselves, carrying their food to tables from counters where it is displayed and served.
2. a lunchroom or dining hall, as in a factory, office, or school, where food is served from counters or dispensed from vending machines or where food brought from home may be eaten.

cafeteria

/ ˌkæfɪˈtɪərɪə /

noun

1. a self-service restaurant

Word History and Origins

Origin of cafeteria¹

An Americanism dating back to 1830–40; from Latin American Spanish cafetería “café,” Spanish cafeter(a) “coffeemaker,” from French caf(f)etière (equivalent to café + etière feminine of -ier ); t apparently by analogy with words such as bouquetière “flower seller,” from bases ending in t ) + -ía; coffee, -ier ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of cafeteria¹

C20: from American Spanish: coffee shop

Example Sentences

Local 99 members include custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, teacher aides and security aides.

From Los Angeles Times

“With each notification of yet another recall — whether it's contaminated prepackaged lunches or potentially unsafe food on the cafeteria menu — your alarm goes through the roof,” Smith wrote via email.

From Salon

My wife teaches middle school math and she says that Donald Trump could not get a job at her school as a teacher, as a substitute, as a receptionist — he could never get a job at her school as a hall monitor, he could not get a job at her school serving food in the cafeteria line.

From Salon

Students at the private school held a mock slave auction among themselves in the cafeteria, openly debating how much the Black student would be worth if he were sold and asking him about his physical capabilities to estimate a price, according to the lawsuit.

From Los Angeles Times

At the top of the list, “cafeteria/commissary” had support from 258 of 303 veterans surveyed.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• lunchroom
• snack bar