Dining means eating a meal, especially in a more formal or deliberate way than just grabbing a quick snack. When your family sits down together for dinner, you're dining together. When you go to a nice restaurant for a special occasion, you're dining out.

The word suggests something more intentional than simply eating to fill your stomach. A dining room is the room in a house specifically set aside for eating meals together, often with a proper table and chairs. A dining hall is where students eat meals at boarding schools or colleges.

Sharing meals builds relationships and creates community. When you dine with others, you spend time together, talking and enjoying each other's company while you eat. That's why families often make dining together a daily ritual, and why special celebrations almost always include a shared meal.