meals

meals — noun

1. the regular times in a day when people sit down to eat, together with the food p

1.名詞A1
釋義

the regular times in a day when people sit down to eat, together with the food prepared and served at those times

例句

Tariq usually eats three meals a day with his grandmother.

collocation: three meals a day

The hotel price includes a soft bed and two hot meals.

collocation: hot meals

同義詞
  • repasts

    formal or literary; rarely used in everyday Taiwan-learner English

  • feeds

    very informal; mostly British, talking about a big or hearty meal

反義詞
  • fasts

    periods when meals are skipped on purpose, for religious or health reasons

  • snacks

    small bites between meals, not full eating occasions

文法句型

three meals a day

have/eat/cook + meals

main/light/hot/cold + meals

用法筆記

Plural form of 'meal'. Often appears in fixed phrases (three meals a day, school meals, hot meals, square meals) where the singular would sound unusual.

常見錯誤

❌I eat three foods a day.
✅I eat three meals a day.
💡'food' names the substance; 'meal' (and its plural 'meals') names the eating occasion itself.

2. rough powders made by grinding seeds, grains, or other dry materials — for examp

2.名詞C1
釋義

rough powders made by grinding seeds, grains, or other dry materials — for example corn meal for cooking, or bone meal sold as garden fertilizer

例句

The farm mixes several seed meals into feed for its dairy cows.

plural pattern: seed/grain meals = different types of ground powder

Élise bought two bags of corn and oat meals at the country market.

collocation: corn meal / oat meal

同義詞
  • flours

    finer than meals; meal is coarser and grittier

  • grits

    very coarse meal, often hominy; common in American Southern cooking

文法句型

[grain/seed] + meal (e.g. corn meal, bone meal, soya meal)

different meals = different types of coarse-ground powder

用法筆記

This sense is normally uncountable in the singular ('a bowl of corn meal'). The plural 'meals' only appears when contrasting different kinds: 'corn and oat meals', 'bone and blood meals'. Distinguish from sense 1: here a 'meal' is a powder, not an eating occasion.

常見錯誤

❌I added two meals of flour to the dough.
✅I added two cups of corn meal to the dough.
💡'meals' here doesn't count portions; it names types of coarse-ground powder.