My partner and I often have an argument about when "next Thursday" is.

So, today is Tuesday the 19th and Thursday the 28th, to me, is next Thursday because Thursday 21st is in this week so it's "this Thursday". He denies all this and says that Thursday the 21st is next Thursday because it is, indeed, the next Thursday.

Is there any hard and fast rule about this or is either acceptable and it's just a regional thing?

(he also calls the meal in the middle of the day "dinner" and "tea" in the evening ... where I have lunch in the middle of the day and dinner in the evening. It can get confusing when I say I'll cook a roast dinner and he expects it at midday and the meat is still defrosting... )

Mmm, so what does your partner call the 'next' Thursday (as I agree with you, Copago, I mean the Thursday after this week, and next week too . . . ), the Thursday after next? (which to me would be erm, in January 2007)

As for the meals bizzo, my sis-in-law (she's a Cane Toad [for the uninitiated, that is someone born in Queensland]) has breakfast, dinner and tea; I have breakfast, lunch and dinner or tea (I was born and grew up in New South Wales); my partner has breakfast, lunch and dinner/supper . . . he's American, so go figure!

Its all confusing but please explain to me what is the difference between 'dinner' and 'supper'? My daughter and her boy friend argue over that one all the time.

I don't know, Lady, lol! I've never really quite worked out what supper is - but I've always guessed at a light meal. The only time I've ever seen it used here is at evening functions and they'll say "a supper is provided" and it's always something like sandwiches or party pies and so on.

I'm born and bred NSW too, Eng, and he is so far western NSW born and bred that it borders on having SA infulence - so perhaps that is where he gets it from. My Mum's theory is that "dinner" is the main meal of the day and as Jack is a grazier and from a grazier family where they were more likely to have a bigger meal in the middle of the day that they call that dinner. Does that make sense? I think I've just confused myself.

Just found this explanation!
In England, (Surprise Surprise) this is a class issue.!

The working class have their Dinner around midday while the upper class are
having Lunch.
The middle & Upper classes have Tea , which consists of tea and finely cut
sandwiches, at about 4.30
Even Cricket Test Matches stop for Tea!

The Working Class have supper in early evening, traditionally bread and
dripping, while the middle and upper classes are probably having something
called 'High Tea' - the last time the parents will
see their children for that day

The Working Class are huddled in bed trying to keep warm while the Upper and
Middles start ther Dinner at about 8pm

At least that's how it used to be before TV Dinners !.

I agree with the next Thursday thing.

My understanding about the difference between dinner and supper for those of elevated class is that dinner is 'served' by waiting staff, supper isn't, it is served by the hostess.

Many years ago I used to give dinner parties and used to attend them. Some of us, including me, used to call it dinner regardless of not have waiting staff, some used to invite us to 'supper' which was a full dinner with a number of courses.

Some people not only had waiting staff (and they employed someone to cook for the evening) but also had the women 'withdrawing' prior to coffee, thus allowing the men to have port etc without us chattering. Sometimes they were black tie too, even in private homes.

All that ended when I left my ex-husband, now I don't entertain.

Quote:

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now I don't entertain

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Oh I see....(sigh) Thought you were going to lay on a few late night suppers for us two and the workmen...

ALL of the workmen Ren?

Why do you ask. I would have thought it was obvious!

Lol . . . that'll be a very merry little Christmas for you and Sue!

My parents grew up on a farm speaking German, learned their English mostly from other farming folk around. They ate breakfast, dinner and supper. About the time I was born, they moved to the city. By the time I left home, they were eating breakfast, lunch and supper. They went 'out' to dinner. I grew up during the switch - I remember trying to figure it out and deciding that "dinner" was the noon meal if you ate it sitting down at a table off a plate. "Lunch" was the noon meal if you carried it with you in a brown paper bag.

I never have figured out the 'this or next' thing - I usually say something along the lines of "not this coming Thurdsday, but next Thursday" to clarify.

Hmm...I also use the Thursday of this week as this Thursday and then the upcoming week to be next Thursday.

As for dinner/supper, they are the same thing here (Tennessee,USA). Here, lunch is at midday, and the night meal could be called either dinner/supper and the two are very interchangeable with no real difference.

Another Aussie version, that I was brought up on.

In my day, 'dinner' was the meal eaten about 1pm, and 'tea' was served between 5 to 7 pm, depending on season.

'Supper' was an additional meal, and usually meant you had not eaten your peas at teatime. Supper could happen anytime after 9pm, and usually consisted of raiding the fridge for anything easy and edible.

'Lunch' was only ever eaten during the main break at school.

Another expression the Aussies I work with (teachers) use is "Morning Tea". This is weird to me, especially when you say it to small children who don't usually indulge in tea at 10.30 am. We call it breaktime, or playtime. North Americans seem to call it recess, which to me is a hole in the wall. What a confusing language English is!

Oh yeah, we have morning tea - funny 'cause I would have assumed we got it from the English. It's funny, cause we have morning tea if we're at home but if we're outside working we call it smoke-o.

Tradition in 'better' circles is to have morning coffee and afternoon tea, - google them and you'll find many examples!
As for 'this and next, it really depends how close you already are. If on Monday, you refer to 'next' Friday or Saturday, it would be the week you are presently in. If however, it was Thursday, then 'next' Friday or Saturday would be the following week.
The lunch/dinner thing seems more of a north/south division, at least in England that is. When I lived in the north of England, dinner was invariably taken at mid-day at week-ends, Sunday 'dinner' being the culinary highlight of the week, but during the working week, dinner was taken in the evening after work.'Lunch' was a term mainly associated with a mid-day snack, though more often called 'bait' by working classes.
Supper, both in the north and south of England, invariably means a light repast or snack taken during late evening, shortly before retiring to bed.

But why tea? For children? In school?

We called it playlunch at school - but the teachers went and had mornign tea at the same time.

Um - is everybody actually EATING at all of these teas, and playlunches? That's starting to add up.

Actually, now I think about it - when I was a kid at school, recess was for going out and playing. There was no food involved, in any way, though I suppose if one of us had something, we'd eat it. Now, though, the kids get a snack break, and then go outside. I guess this makes a certain amount of snese for the younger ones, as it's a long time from breakfast to lunch, when you are five. For older kids though, it seems an awful lot of food - maybe has something to do with the outbreak of obesity among children here. The snacks are not just something small, either - one cookie or whatever, but are complete little meals.

Well thank you all for your contributions, I'm now even more confused than before.

I guess it is one more thing that has been 'lost in translation'.

Wonder about the upper class eating dinner as Hyacynth Bucket serves "candle-light suppers" and she assumes she is upper-class.

I always use 'next' to mean the the day in question to be the one immediately following the previous day of the same designation. So, next Saturday will be this coming Saturday not the one following. If it is the Saturday following the Saturday that is approaching (the next saturday) I would state, 'a week this Saturday' or 'Saturday week' Or, to avoid confusion, I will count on my fingers the amount of days intervening between the present and the future date, in total; although, this can go very wrong for some reason because I always seem to be left with the wrong finger designating an incorrect number.

As for dinner, supper etc. We always enjoyed our beef pate (dripping) sandwiches with coa-coa at suppertime along with the happy shrieks as other little malcontents were thrashed by whip wieding nuns. Joy oh joy, those were the days.
I don't really think that too many folk refer to 'supper time' anymore. It's considered rather too cloth cap (no offence to anyone who wears a cloth cap).

I think in future I'll use the date, "shall we have lunch on THursday the 6th?" because I'm so confused.

Perhaps you should specify the time, too- you may be 6 hours early (or late!)