tea S1 W2 /tiː/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1600-1700 ; Language: Chinese ; Origin: te ]
1 . DRINK/LEAVES
a) [uncountable and countable] a hot brown drink made by pouring boiling water onto the dried leaves from a particular Asian bush, or a cup of this drink:
Would you like a cup of tea or coffee?
Do you take milk and sugar in your tea?
I’d like two teas and a piece of chocolate cake, please.
b) [uncountable] dried, finely cut leaves that are used to make tea
c) [uncountable] bushes whose leaves are used to make tea:
tea plantations
2 . mint/camomile etc tea a hot drink made by pouring boiling water onto leaves or flowers, sometimes used as a medicine
3 . MEAL [uncountable and countable] British English
a) a small meal of cake or ↑ biscuit s eaten in the afternoon with a cup of tea:
We serve lunch and afternoon tea.
We stopped for a cream tea on the way home (=tea and cream cakes) .
b) used in some parts of Britain to mean a large meal that is eaten early in the evening ⇨ ↑ high tea
4 . tea and sympathy British English kindness and attention that you give someone when they are upset
⇨ not be your cup of tea at ↑ cup 1
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ phrases
▪ a cup/mug of tea
Would you like a cup of tea?
▪ a pot of tea
Shall I make a pot of tea?
■ adjectives
▪ hot
The tea was too hot to drink.
▪ sweet
I poured Helen a mug of sweet tea and waited for her to answer.
▪ strong
You've made the tea too strong.
▪ weak
You have your tea weak, don't you Chris?
▪ black (=without milk)
I ordered black tea and toast.
▪ white (=with milk)
Two white teas and a coffee, please.
▪ milky (=with a lot of milk)
I don't like my tea so milky.
■ verbs
▪ drink tea
Susan sank into her chair and drank her tea.
▪ pour tea
She poured the tea and handed a cup to Cara.
• • •
THESAURUS
■ types of meal
▪ breakfast a meal that you eat in the morning
▪ brunch a meal that you eat in the late morning, instead of breakfast or lunch
▪ lunch a meal that you eat in the middle of the day
▪ tea British English a meal that you eat in the afternoon or evening
▪ dinner the main meal of the day, which most people eat in the evening
▪ supper a small meal that you eat in the evening, in British English; the main meal that you eat in the evening, in American English
▪ picnic a meal that you eat outdoors, consisting of food that you cooked or prepared earlier
▪ barbecue a meal that you cook outdoors over hot coals or wood and eat outdoors
▪ snack a small amount of food that is eaten between main meals or instead of a meal
▪ side dish food eaten with the main course, such as vegetables:
I’ll have the salad as a side dish.
▪ course one of the separate parts of a meal, such as the starter or the dessert:
a three-course meal