elevenses
noun

- a short break for light refreshments, usually with tea or coffee, taken at about eleven o'clock in the morning

-  light refreshment (such as a snack) taken in the middle of the morning

Oxford Languages, Merriam-Webster

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WORD ORIGIN

The word "elevenses” comes directly from the word "eleven", referring to the time of day when the break is traditionally taken.

The earliest recorded usage of "elevenses" in English dates back to the mid-1800s, primarily in Britain. It was modeled after the earlier term "fourses", which referred to a mid-afternoon refreshment, much like afternoon tea.

The concept of a mid-morning refreshment existed across Europe before the term itself:  In Spain, a similar break is called almuerzo (mid-morning meal). Germany there is zweites Frühstück (second breakfast). In **Austria, a comparable tradition is called Jause.

The term became popular in the 20th century, cemented in British culture as a reference to a short break with tea, biscuits, or a light snack. It was famously referenced in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, where Hobbits consider "elevenses" an essential meal of the day.

While the popularity of "elevenses" has waned, it remains a charming reminder of traditional British habits!

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NUMBER-IDIOMS

How many of these do you know?

- At sixes and sevens = in a state of confusion or disorder

- Dressed (up) to the nines = looking extremely elegant or fashionable

- Someone’s two cents = unsolicited advice, often unwelcome

- Two shakes of a lamb’s tail = very quickly or in no time at all

- Three (or four) sheets to the wind = drunk or heavily intoxicated

- One for the road = a final drink before leaving

- A two-bit operation = a low-quality or unprofessional business

- A fifth wheel = an unnecessary person or thing (from the extra wheel on a carriage)

- The sixty-four-thousand-dollar question = the crucial or decisive question

- Nine-day wonder = something that attracts attention for a short time before being forgotten

- A five o’clock shadow = beard growth visible late in the day on a man's shaven face

- Five-finger discount = the stealing of items from a shop (shoplifting)

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SYNONYMS

11 a.m. pick-me-up (cuppa, nibble), a moment to breathe, afternoon prequel, biscuit break, break (for a bite, for a brew), breakfast encore, breather, brew break, brunch-lite, caffeine intermission, chai chill, coffee break (fix, interlude, pause, pit stop, reboot, ritual, stop), cuppa and a biscuit, ELEVENSES, elevensies, food for thought break, fuel stop, halfway-to-lunch snack, kettle break, liquid lifeline, mid-morning booster (breather, coffee, cuppa, interlude, munch, pause, perk-up), moment of zen, morning brew break (fuel stop, intermission, munch, snack, tea), nibble break, pause (that refreshes), petit déjeuner anglais, pre-lunch snack (tea), quick coffee stop (cuppa, munch, recharge), refreshment time, reset button, second breakfast, sip and pause, sugar rush pause, tea and biscuit break, tea break, tea o’clock, tea time timeout, teatime teaser, the Hobbit meal

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“ELEVENSES: the time when your stomach realises that breakfast was three hours ago, and lunch is still two hours away.”

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