dine out on

present singular third person dines out on · participle present dining out on · participle past dined out on · past dined out on

1. To be invited to dinner because of one's conversation about (a particular subject or incident).

   It's a story I can dine out on for years.

   2023, Peter Murphy, A Week on Mount Olympus: and other Tales from the Bench

   3 more examples

   […] worse things can happen than a picked pocket. One can dine out on that for a season.

   1973, Stefan A. Szczelkun, Survival Scrapbook: Energy

   Indeed, three of the most recognisable male actors in Hollywood at the moment used to dine out on powerbombs and bodyslams.

   2021 July 28, Sam Moore, “Dwayne Johnson and why wrestlers make ideal Hollywood stars”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name)

   Every guest is appalled and fantastically humourless about the experience, even at this distance. You cannot help but wonder at cultural divides and how differently the British might have approached – or at least recalled – such events, at least in the early days. For us, surely, it would be a story for the ages. You could dine out on it for ever, so to speak.

   2026 June 24, Lucy Mangan, “Poop Cruise review – a fascinating look at a toilet disaster that still haunts passengers 12 years later”, in The Guardian