DIET

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does diet mean? 

• DIET (noun)
  The noun DIET has 4 senses:

1. a prescribed selection of foods

2. a legislative assembly in certain countries (e.g., Japan)

3. the usual food and drink consumed by an organism (person or animal)

4. the act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods)

  Familiarity information: DIET used as a noun is uncommon.

• DIET (verb)
  The verb DIET has 2 senses:

1. follow a regimen or a diet, as for health reasons

2. eat sparingly, for health reasons or to lose weight

  Familiarity information: DIET used as a verb is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• DIET (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

A prescribed selection of foods

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Hypernyms ("diet" is a kind of...):

fare (the food and drink that are regularly served or consumed)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "diet"):

allergy diet (a diet designed to avoid the foods that you are allergic to)

balanced diet (a diet that contains adequate amounts of all the necessary nutrients required for healthy growth and activity)

bland diet; ulcer diet (a diet of foods that are not irritating)

diabetic diet (a diet designed to help control the symptoms of diabetes)

dietary supplement (something added to complete a diet or to make up for a dietary deficiency)

carbo loading; carbohydrate loading (a diet of foods high in starch that increases carbohydrate reserves in muscles)

gluten-free diet (diet prescribed to treat celiac disease; eliminates such foods as wheat and rye and oats and beans and cabbage and turnips and cucumbers that are rich in gluten)

high-protein diet (a diet high in plant and animal proteins; used to treat malnutrition or to increase muscle mass)

high-vitamin diet; vitamin-deficiency diet (a diet designed to patients with vitamin deficiencies)

light diet (diet prescribed for bedridden or convalescent people; does not include fried or highly seasoned foods)

liquid diet (a diet of foods that can be served in liquid or strained form (plus custards or puddings); prescribed after certain kinds of surgery)

low-fat diet (a diet containing limited amounts of fat and stressing foods high in carbohydrates; used in treatment of some gallbladder conditions)

low-salt diet; low-sodium diet; salt-free diet (a diet that limits the intake of salt (sodium chloride); often used in treating hypertension or edema or certain other disorders)

obesity diet; reducing diet (a diet designed to help you lose weight (especially fat))

pap; soft diet; spoon food (a diet that does not require chewing; advised for those with intestinal disorders)

vegetarianism (a diet excluding all meat and fish)

Derivation:

dietetical (of or relating to the diet)

dietician (a specialist in the study of diet and nutrition)

dietetic; dietary (of or relating to the diet)

diet (follow a regimen or a diet, as for health reasons)

diet (eat sparingly, for health reasons or to lose weight)

Sense 2

Meaning:

A legislative assembly in certain countries (e.g., Japan)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting groupings of people or objects

Hypernyms ("diet" is a kind of...):

general assembly; law-makers; legislative assembly; legislative body; legislature (persons who make or amend or repeal laws)

Domain region:

Japan; Nihon; Nippon (a constitutional monarchy occupying the Japanese Archipelago; a world leader in electronics and automobile manufacture and ship building)

Sense 3

Meaning:

The usual food and drink consumed by an organism (person or animal)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Hypernyms ("diet" is a kind of...):

fare (the food and drink that are regularly served or consumed)

Domain category:

animal; animate being; beast; brute; creature; fauna (a living organism characterized by voluntary movement)

Derivation:

dietary; dietetic; dietetical (of or relating to the diet)

dietician (a specialist in the study of diet and nutrition)

Sense 4

Meaning:

The act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

diet; dieting

Hypernyms ("diet" is a kind of...):

fast; fasting (abstaining from food)

Derivation:

diet (follow a regimen or a diet, as for health reasons)

dietary (of or relating to the diet)

dietician (a specialist in the study of diet and nutrition)

diet (eat sparingly, for health reasons or to lose weight)

• DIET (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they diet    ... he / she / it diets   
Past simple: dieted   
Past participle: dieted   
-ing form: dieting   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Follow a regimen or a diet, as for health reasons

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Context example:

He has high blood pressure and must stick to a low-salt diet

Hypernyms (to "diet" is one way to...):

fast (abstain from certain foods, as for religious or medical reasons)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Derivation:

diet (the act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods))

diet (a prescribed selection of foods)

dietary (a regulated daily food allowance)

dieter (a person who diets)

dieting (the act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Eat sparingly, for health reasons or to lose weight

Classified under:

Verbs of eating and drinking

Hypernyms (to "diet" is one way to...):

fast (abstain from eating)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s

Derivation:

diet (the act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods))

diet (a prescribed selection of foods)

dietary (a regulated daily food allowance)

dieter (a person who diets)

dieting (the act of restricting your food intake (or your intake of particular foods))

 Context examples 

Some cancers such as leukemias are highly dependent on asparagine circulating in the blood that comes from the diet.

(Catabolic Pathway for Asparagine and Aspartate, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

For a healthy diet, limit the amount of added sugar that you eat and choose whole grains over refined grains.

(Carbohydrates, NIH)

All methods of preventing cancer including limit of exposure to carcinogens and infectious agents, diet, education, etc

(Cancer Prevention, NCI Thesaurus)

Cancer epidemiology involves the study of how physical surroundings, occupational hazards and personal habits (smoking, diet and lifestyle) may contribute to the development of cancer.

(Cancer Epidemiology, NCI Thesaurus)

Amino acids in the diet have one of two fates - either they are incorporated into proteins or they are broken down for energy and metabolic intermediates.

(Catabolic Pathways for Alanine, Glycine, Serine, Cysteine, Tryptophan, and Threonine, NCI Thesaurus/BIOCARTA)

It is more frequently seen in populations with a Western type diet and in patients with a history of chronic inflammatory bowel disease.

(Cecum Adenocarcinoma, NCI Thesaurus)

It may involve simple changes in a person’s diet, or intravenous or tube feeding.

(Medical nutrition therapy, NCI Dictionary)

It may also include information about medicines taken and health habits, such as diet and exercise.

(Medical history, NCI Dictionary)

However, the prognosis is favorable with successful avoidance of gluten in the diet.

(Celiac Disease, NCI Thesaurus)

If you cannot control your high blood pressure through lifestyle changes such as losing weight and reducing sodium in your diet, you may need medicines.

(Blood Pressure Medicines, NIH: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute)