# hotel

/hoʊˈtɛɫ/ (US) · /həʊtˈɛl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/hotel
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. place to stay

noun · CEFR A1

a building where you pay to stay in a room, usually for a few nights while on a trip.

For teachers: an establishment providing paid accommodation and services for travelers, typically larger and offering more amenities than a guesthouse.

- We stayed in a small hotel near the beach during our summer holiday.
- The business travelers preferred the hotel near the airport because it offered high-speed internet and a twenty-four-hour fitness center.

### 2. a pub

noun · CEFR B2 · Dialect

in some places like Australia, a word for a pub or a bar where people go to drink.

For teachers: a public house or licensed premises, primarily used for the consumption of alcohol.

- He met his friends at the local hotel for a drink after work.
- In many rural Australian towns, the local hotel serves as the primary social hub for the community to gather and share news.

### 3. a restaurant

noun · CEFR B2 · Dialect

in South Asia, a word often used for a restaurant or a place to eat.

For teachers: any dining establishment or restaurant, regardless of whether it provides overnight accommodation.

- We stopped at a small hotel on the side of the road for a quick lunch.
- The sign for the hotel advertised fresh vegetarian meals, though the building itself had no rooms for guests to stay overnight.

### 4. the letter H

noun · CEFR C1 · Technical

the word used for the letter 'H' when speaking clearly over the radio.

For teachers: the code word for the letter 'H' in the international radiotelephony spelling alphabet.

- The pilot spelled out the flight code as 'Alpha-Bravo-Hotel'.
- To ensure clarity over the static-filled radio frequency, the dispatcher used 'Hotel' to confirm the eighth character of the serial number.

### 5. grand town house

noun · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Formal

a very large and grand private house in a city, especially in France.

For teachers: a large, grand private residence or mansion, specifically an 'hôtel particulier' in a French context.

- The old hotel in the center of Paris was once home to a famous duke.
- The architecture of the seventeenth-century hotel reflected the immense wealth and social standing of the aristocratic family that commissioned it.

## Examples

- We are staying at a hotel near the beach.
- The business traveler booked a hotel room for three nights while attending the conference in the city center.
- While budget hostels cater to younger travelers, this luxury hotel offers high-end amenities including a full-service spa and twenty-four-hour concierge assistance.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.