/ ˈdaɪət; NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
1.
[ C , U ] the food that you eat and drink regularly :
to have a healthy, balanced diet
the Japanese diet of rice, vegetables and fish
to receive advice on diet
2.
[ C ] a limited variety or amount of food that you eat for medical reasons or because you want to lose weight; a time when you only eat this limited variety or amount :
a low-fat, salt-free diet
diet drinks (= with fewer calories than normal)
I decided to go on a diet (= to lose weight) before my holiday.
3.
[ sing. ] a ~ of sth ( disapproving ) a large amount of a restricted range of activities :
Children today are brought up on a diet of television cartoons and soap operas.
► diet·ary / ˈdaɪətəri; NAmE -teri/ adjective [ usually before noun ]:
dietary advice / changes / habits
dietary fibre
■ verb
[ v ] to eat less food or only food of a particular type in order to lose weight
SYN be on a diet :
She's always dieting but she never seems to lose any weight.
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WORD ORIGIN
Middle English : from Old French diete (noun), dieter (verb), via Latin from Greek diaita a way of life.