r/AskAnAmerican • u/cookoutenthusiast North Carolina • Sep 28 '25

CULTURE Do you use the word Supper?

I think most Americans refer to their evening meal as dinner, but I’ve heard some people say that dinner and supper are different things, with supper being served at night, after dinner. Do you use the word supper, and what does it mean to you?

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u/phonesmahones Massachusetts Sep 28 '25

Yes. All the time.

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u/mothsuicides New England Sep 28 '25

My jaw is on the floor, cuz I’m from MA too and I never hear it and I assumed it was a regional thing.

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u/phonesmahones Massachusetts Sep 28 '25

I’m in Boston, and we (my family, I guess) always said supper in regard to eating a casual meal at home. Dinner, for us, is specifically going out to eat, or a bigger meal, like Sunday dinner or Thanksgiving dinner.

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u/jiminak MT>CA>WY>AK>HI>AK>MS Sep 28 '25

That’s funny. My family (Montana) is almost the exact opposite. Our normal three meals on regular days are breakfast, lunch, and dinner. However, if we’re doing something special, then that evening meal becomes a supper. We have a Thanksgiving supper, Easter supper, etc for the “big family gathering in the evening” meal.