finish your dinner

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "finish your dinner" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when instructing someone, typically a child, to complete their meal. Example: "Before you can have dessert, you need to finish your dinner."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Wiki

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

5 human-written examples

Another method is to go without eating for 12 to 15 hours each day; for example, eat a late breakfast at 10 a.m. and finish your dinner before 7 p.m.

Cornell University

When I was growing up, my parents used to say to me, "Tom, finish your dinner -- people in China are starving". But after sailing to the edges of the flat world for a year, I am now telling my own daughters, "Girls, finish your homework -- people in China and India are starving for your jobs". I repeat, this is not a test.

The New York Times - Magazine

Writer Thomas Friedman recalls his parents telling him, "Finish your dinner -- people in China are starving".

Huffington Post

Never force yourself to finish your dinner.

WikiHow

Maybe you have trouble leaving food on your plate because as a child you were told, "finish your dinner, there are starving children in Africa".

HuffPost

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

55 human-written examples

Jackson sang about the pointlessness of violence; Yankovic used the handiest rhyme available and turned "Beat It" into a song about finishing your dinner.

The New Yorker

It's a must-have feature for the new creation medium, which seems to ask for the passage of time in certain circumstances (like a Vine of you finishing your dinner, for example).

TechCrunch

If you grew up in the United States in the 1980s, chances are your parents probably repeated the same "there-are-starving-children-in-Africa" line to guilt you into finishing your dinner plate as mine did.

Huffington Post

Of course, the work is voluntary, but it's that kind of fake voluntary where someone comes up to you right as you're finishing your dinner and says, "I have a job for a strong boy, if you're interested".

Vice

It has been a long road for the singer-songwriter, who specialises in unflinching, raw vignettes ("He'd call her a sinner/ You're going to Hell/ Now finish your dinner/ And tell 'em you fell", she maintains on "Louisiana Story") about abuse, loss, longing and toxic pasts, and her latest, The Ghosts of Highway 20, could be her most accomplished yet.

Independent

And finish your roast dinner".

The Guardian - Opinion

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When instructing someone, especially children, to "finish your dinner", consider adding a positive reinforcement or reason, such as 'If you "finish your dinner", you can have dessert' or '"Finish your dinner" so you have energy for playing later.'

Common error

Avoid using guilt-inducing statements like '"Finish your dinner", there are starving children elsewhere'. This can create a negative association with food and eating habits.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "finish your dinner" primarily functions as an imperative, directly instructing or urging someone to complete their meal. This is evident in many examples from Ludwig, where it's used in parental advice, dietary suggestions, and anecdotal stories.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

News & Media

38%

Wiki

28%

Academia

4%

Less common in

Science

3%

Formal & Business

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "finish your dinner" is a common imperative phrase used to instruct someone to complete their meal. As Ludwig AI indicates, it is grammatically correct and widely used across various contexts, ranging from news media to wikis. While generally informal, it appears in a range of sources and carries the primary purpose of encouraging or directing someone to consume all their food. When using this phrase, consider the context and the relationship with the person you're speaking to, and avoid using guilt-inducing statements. Alternatives such as "complete your meal" can also be used depending on the situation.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

complete your meal

Focuses on the act of finishing the entire meal, rather than a specific course.

eat up your food

Emphasizes the act of consuming all the food that was served.

clear your plate

Highlights the action of removing all food from the plate.

eat everything on your plate

Stresses the completeness of eating all the food provided.

consume your dinner

A more formal way of saying "eat your dinner".

polish off your dinner

Suggests eating dinner quickly and completely.

devour your dinner

Implies eating dinner with enthusiasm and speed.

get through your dinner

Focuses on the act of managing to eat all the dinner.

make sure to eat all your dinner

Emphasizes the importance of eating everything.

don't leave any dinner on your plate

Instructs against leaving any food uneaten.

FAQs

How can I politely ask someone to "finish your dinner"?

You can use gentler alternatives like "complete your meal" or "would you like to finish eating" to avoid sounding demanding.

What's another way to say "finish your dinner" to a child?

Try phrases like "eat up your food" or "clear your plate", which can be more encouraging and less direct.

Is it always necessary to "finish your dinner"?

It's generally good to encourage children to eat nutritious meals, but forcing them to "finish your dinner" when they are full can create negative associations with food. Encourage mindful eating instead.

What can I do if my child refuses to "finish your dinner"?

Instead of forcing them, try offering smaller portions, making mealtime more enjoyable, or discussing the importance of eating a balanced diet. Focus on creating positive habits rather than demanding they "finish your dinner".