diners

IPA/ˈdaɪ.nər/
KK[dˈaɪnɚz]IPA/ˈdaɪ.nɚ/

diners — 名詞

  • dinerssingular
  • dinersesplural

1. People who are having a meal, especially at a restaurant, café, or other food-se

1.名詞B1
釋義

用餐者

在餐廳吃飯的人

People who are having a meal, especially at a restaurant, café, or other food-service place.

例句

The waiter brought coffee to the two diners sitting in the corner booth.

服務生端咖啡給坐在角落卡座的兩位用餐者。

countable noun: diners + prepositional phrase for location

Jabari glanced around the room and noticed that most diners had nearly finished their meals.

Jabari 環顧擁擠的餐廳，發現大部分用餐者都差不多吃完了。

同義詞
  • customer

    broader term — a customer buys something but may not eat on site

  • patron

    more formal, refers to a regular visitor of a restaurant or establishment

  • guest

    common in restaurant-industry language, implies being served or invited

文法句型

diners + verb

diners + prepositional phrase

用法筆記

This sense is almost always used in the plural form, since the word describes people in a group setting. The singular 'a diner' is less common and refers to one specific person eating.

常見錯誤

❌The restaurant was full of customers eating dinner.
✅The restaurant was full of diners eating dinner.
💡'Customer' focuses on the act of buying; 'diner' specifically describes someone in the middle of a meal.

2. A casual, low-cost restaurant common in the United States, typically located nea

2.名詞B1
釋義

小餐館

美國路邊平價家庭式餐廳

A casual, low-cost restaurant common in the United States, typically located near roads or highways, with a long menu of classic American dishes and often a long counter with stools.

例句

Théo stopped at a roadside diner and ordered a cheese omelette and coffee.

Théo 在一家路邊小餐館停下來，點了一份起司蛋捲和咖啡。

countable noun: at + a + descriptive adjective + diner

Most small-town diners in the US serve pancakes, burgers, and apple pie all year round.

美國大多數小鎮的平價餐館全年供應鬆餅、漢堡和蘋果派。

同義詞
  • café

    similar in being casual, but a café focuses more on coffee and light meals

  • dive bar/restaurant

    informal US term; 'dive' implies the place is run-down but friendly

  • greasy spoon

    very informal British/US term for a cheap, basic eating place

文法句型

at/in a diner

diner + serves/has/offers

用法筆記

Frequently modified by location adjectives: 'roadside diner', 'all-night diner', 'local diner', 'neighbourhood diner'. The word carries a distinctly American cultural meaning — a 'diner' in the UK or Australia usually refers to the person eating, not the restaurant.

常見錯誤

❌We booked a table at an expensive diner for our anniversary.
✅We booked a table at a nice restaurant for our anniversary.
💡A diner is casual and low-cost; use 'restaurant' for formal or expensive dining.

3. A train carriage that is equipped with tables, seating, and a kitchen so passeng

3.名詞B2
釋義

餐車

火車上供應餐點的車廂

A train carriage that is equipped with tables, seating, and a kitchen so passengers can buy and eat meals while travelling.

例句

Arjun walked three carriages ahead to the diner to buy a sandwich and a drink.

Arjun 往前走了三節車廂到餐車，買了一份三明治和一杯飲料。

definite article: the + diner (unique to the train)

The long-distance train had two diners, one for each class of passenger.

這趟長途列車有兩節餐車，分別服務不同等級的旅客。

同義詞

文法句型

in the diner

the train's diner

用法筆記

Often interchangeable with 'dining car', though 'diner' is shorter and more informal. In modern trains these carriages are giving way to café-bar cars, so the term is most commonly encountered in descriptions of older or classic rail journeys.

常見錯誤

❌A diner pulled up beside the park and started selling tacos.
✅A food truck pulled up beside the park and started selling tacos.
💡'Diner' as a railway carriage is not the same as a mobile food truck, even though 餐車 in Chinese can mean food truck.