How people refer to their evening meal might sound like a fairly insipid subject, but in fact, it is a highly contentious issue around the UK, where terms are as varied as the meals themselves.
According to a new survey by hotel chain Travelodge, more than half of Britons (54 per cent) prefer to say “dinner” while 40 per cent choose to call their evening meal “tea”.
Meanwhile, just five per cent of people refer to their final meal of the day as “supper”.
The survey, which was conducted on guests at Travelodge’s 200 restaurants around the UK, also looked at how descriptions differed between regions.
It found that “tea” is a more common term in the north of the UK while “dinner” was more popular in southern regions, such as London.
One in five people surveyed said they thought “tea” referred to a cup of tea while 15 per cent would expect afternoon tea with cakes and sandwiches if they were invited to "tea".
The survey also found that the average evening meal is consumed at 7pm.
Shakila Ahmed of Travelodge said that restaurant staff frequently debate whether one’s evening meal should be referred to as dinner or tea.
“Opinion is clearly divided across the country – but dinner is growing in popularity,” she said.
