<p>Actually I think in northern China we never use 中饭. I come from Hebei province and I had never heard this word until I came to college in Guangzhou. It seems that 中饭 exists only in southern Chinese dialects. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T15:34:19.370Z
2015-03-10T15:34:19.370Z
Han
<p>中饭 and 午饭 both refer to <code>lunch</code>. But as the answer mentioned, they are different in the environment you use it.</p>

<p><code>午饭</code> is more formal than <code>中饭</code>. <code>午饭</code> can be used both in spoken and written Chinese. But <code>中饭</code> is used in spoken Chinese and mostly in dialect in southern China. As I come from southern Jiangsu(江苏) province, we never say <code>午饭</code> in our conversation. </p>

<p>You can see more here:</p>

<ul>
<li>午饭 <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/8/da/213242.htm" rel="nofollow">http://www.zdic.net/c/8/da/213242.htm</a></li>
<li>中饭 <a href="http://www.zdic.net/c/d/13d/304410.htm" rel="nofollow">http://www.zdic.net/c/d/13d/304410.htm</a></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-12T12:37:57.607Z
2015-03-12T12:37:57.607Z
einverne
<p>Read those loudly, continually. It is better than remembering single word.</p>

<p>早饭，午饭，晚饭</p>

<p>开饭啦，吃早饭啦，吃午饭啦，吃晚饭啦</p>

<p>我正在吃早饭，我正在吃午饭，我正在吃晚饭</p>

<p>你吃过早饭了吗，你吃过吃午饭了吗，你吃过吃晚饭了吗</p>

<p>我吃过早饭了，我吃过吃午饭了，我吃过吃晚饭了</p>

<p>BUT， we say, 早中晚三顿饭. For example，</p>

<p>我们早中晚三顿饭都在学校吃。</p>

<p>（I hate to tell this, but it is true.）</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-25T05:04:59.950Z
This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post.
congusbongus
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-25T13:42:52.003Z
The question is what is the difference of the two words. The answer is the usage. How you use it with different context makes difference. There are no reasons for the usages.
PdotWang
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T23:07:31.757Z
2015-03-11T00:56:12.697Z
2015-03-11T00:56:12.697Z
PdotWang
<p>The same meaning, all Chinese people should know the meaning of 午饭, most Chinese people should know the meaning of 中饭, so you can speak any words.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-11T09:55:50.650Z
2015-03-12T05:12:57.500Z
2015-03-12T05:12:57.500Z
peterwang
<p>午饭 is used more in writing and formal than 中饭. Certainly you can use 中饭 in your writing and people won't get confused with which one you use.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T08:03:20.923Z
What about using them in spoken language?
UVV
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T08:06:38.117Z
@UVV Both of them are OK. Really not much difference. Use 中饭 if you want to speak LOUDLY :)
WangYudong
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T08:01:30.690Z
2015-03-10T08:01:30.690Z
WangYudong
<p>What would be the difference between two of them? Is the first one used at all? My teacher says I should prefer the last one to be understood and to avoid confusion.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-10T17:56:58.693Z
I've heard of 午饭 and 中午饭, but not 中饭.
Joe Z.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-03-11T03:33:29.660Z
They are exact same. 中饭 only used by dialect/oral.
Daniel Yang
<vocabulary>
Difference between 中饭 and 午饭
# Difference between 中饭 and 午饭

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-03-10)

What would be the difference between two of them? Is the first one used at all? My teacher says I should prefer the last one to be understood and to avoid confusion.

**Tags:** vocabulary

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I've heard of 午饭 and 中午饭, but not 中饭.  
> **username_2**: They are exact same. 中饭 only used by dialect/oral.  

---

## 5 answers

### Answer by username_3 on 2015-03-10. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

Actually I think in northern China we never use 中饭. I come from Hebei province and I had never heard this word until I came to college in Guangzhou. It seems that 中饭 exists only in southern Chinese dialects.


---

### Answer by username_4 on 2015-03-12. Score: 4

中饭 and 午饭 both refer to `lunch`. But as the answer mentioned, they are different in the environment you use it.

`午饭` is more formal than `中饭`. `午饭` can be used both in spoken and written Chinese. But `中饭` is used in spoken Chinese and mostly in dialect in southern China. As I come from southern Jiangsu(江苏) province, we never say `午饭` in our conversation.

You can see more here:

* 午饭 <http://www.zdic.net/c/8/da/213242.htm>
* 中饭 <http://www.zdic.net/c/d/13d/304410.htm>


---

### Answer by username_5 on 2015-03-10. Score: 3

Read those loudly, continually. It is better than remembering single word.

早饭，午饭，晚饭

开饭啦，吃早饭啦，吃午饭啦，吃晚饭啦

我正在吃早饭，我正在吃午饭，我正在吃晚饭

你吃过早饭了吗，你吃过吃午饭了吗，你吃过吃晚饭了吗

我吃过早饭了，我吃过吃午饭了，我吃过吃晚饭了

BUT， we say, 早中晚三顿饭. For example，

我们早中晚三顿饭都在学校吃。

（I hate to tell this, but it is true.）

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post.  
> **username_5**: The question is what is the difference of the two words. The answer is the usage. How you use it with different context makes difference. There are no reasons for the usages.  

---

### Answer by username_7 on 2015-03-11. Score: 1

The same meaning, all Chinese people should know the meaning of 午饭, most Chinese people should know the meaning of 中饭, so you can speak any words.


---

### Answer by username_8 on 2015-03-10. Score: 1

午饭 is used more in writing and formal than 中饭. Certainly you can use 中饭 in your writing and people won't get confused with which one you use.

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: What about using them in spoken language?  
> **username_8**: @username_0 Both of them are OK. Really not much difference. Use 中饭 if you want to speak LOUDLY :)  

---

