What does "repast" mean?
A meal.
Repast
/ɹɪˈpɑːst/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Moderate ·College level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A meal.
- Grammar: repast is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: meal, banquet, board, consume.
- Useful contrasts: abstain, fast, fasting.
- Usage evidence: This is quite a repast you've set out for us.
How to use "repast"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "repast" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "repast" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "repast" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "repast" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "repast" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "meal" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "repast", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A meal. archaic, countable, literary, uncountable
"After evening repaſt, till bed time their thoughts will be beſt taken up in the eaſie grounds of Religion, and the ſtory of Scripture."
- 2 the food served and eaten at one time wordnet
- 3 A period of refreshment or rest. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"[T]he nobleſt Raptures have been conceiv'd in the Walks and ſhades of Trees, […] the Profound Philoſophers lov'd here to paſſe their lives in repoſe and Contemplation, and the frugal Repaſts—molleſque ſub arbore ſomni [a soft sleep under the tree] were the natural and chaſt delights of our Fore-Fathers."
- 4 Food or drink that may be consumed as a meal. archaic, countable, uncountable
"I prethee go, and get me ſome repaſt, / I care not what, ſo it be holſome foode."
- 5 Something that is intellectually or spiritually nourishing. archaic, countable, figuratively, uncountable
"For nought he car'd his carcas long vnfed; / His mind was full of ſpirituall repaſt, / And pyn'd his fleſh, to keepe his body low and chaſt."
Show 1 more definition
- 6 The consumption of food; also, refreshment obtained from eating; (generally) refreshment; rest. countable, obsolete, uncountable
"Forthwith he runnes with feigned faithfull haſt / Vnto his gueſt, who after troublous ſights / And dreames gan now to take more ſound repaſt, […]"
Verb
- 1 To supply (an animal or person) with food; to feed. archaic, transitive
"To his good friends thus wide I'le ope my armes, / And like the kind life-rendring Pelican, / Repaſt them with my blood."
- 2 To provide (a person) with intellectual or spiritual nourishment; to enlighten, to feed. archaic, figuratively, transitive
- 3 To refresh (oneself or someone) through eating and drinking. also, obsolete, reflexive, transitive
"[A]nd ſoo within a lytil whyle they came to that heremytage ⸝ and there they dranke the wyne ⸝ and ete the veneſon and the foules baken ⸝ And ſo whan they had repaſted hem wel ⸝ the dwarf retorned ageyn with his veſſel vn to the caſtel ageyne ⸝ […]"
- 4 Usually followed by on or upon: to take food and drink; to feast, to feed. also, figuratively, intransitive, obsolete
"And now they reach'd the naval Walls, and found / The Guards repaſting, while the Bowls go round; […]"
Example
"This is quite a repast you've set out for us."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "repast"?
Common synonyms include: meal, banquet, board, consume, consumption, dine.
How do you use "repast" in a sentence?
This is quite a repast you've set out for us.
How do you pronounce "repast"?
Pronounced /ɹɪˈpɑːst/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English repast, repaste (“feast, meal; food, nourishment; the Eucharist; refreshment, rest”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman, Middle French, Old French repast, Middle French, Old French repas (“meal, repast; spiritual nourishment”) (modern French repas), probably from Medieval Latin, Late Latin repastus (“meal”), from repāstus, the perfect passive participle of repāscō (“to feed; to feed one after another”), from Latin re- (prefix meaning ‘again’) + pāscō (“to feed, nourish; to pasture (an animal); of an animal: to browse, graze; to maintain, support”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to protect; to shepherd”)).
Etymology 2
Partly: * from Middle English repasten (“(reflexive) to refresh (oneself) with food”) [and other forms], either from repast, repaste (“feast, meal; food, nourishment; the Eucharist; refreshment, rest”) + -en (suffix forming the infinitive forms of verbs); or from Late Latin repāstus, the perfect passive participle of repāscō (“to feed; to feed one after another”) (see further at etymology 1); and * from repast (noun).