dive bar
noun
plural dive bars
: an unpretentious and usually inexpensive bar that caters especially to regular clientele
… the people I drink and listen to music with tend to gather … at favored dive bars where the music and ambiance suit our taste and demographic. … These joints are never sleek or swank, but are places that are nonjudgmental … and are open late.—
Anthony Bourdain
Anthony BourdainThis hole-in-the-wall dive bar is easy to miss, nestled between an unassuming pizza joint and a 7-Eleven.—Oset Babur
Oset BaburIf you headed out for the night to get a few drinks with friends and you all decided to go to a dive bar, how absurd would it be if one of your buddies then started complaining about the lack of artisanal snacks and vintage cocktails on the menu?—Michael Walsh
Michael WalshExamples of dive bar in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
They were surprised by the line snaking out the door and the $5 cover to get into the hockey dive bar.
—
Katelyn Umholtz,
Kansas City Star,
1 July 2026
Paymaster Lounge, Portland, Oregon A good dive bar rarely lends itself to outdoor seating.
—
Scott Hocker,
TheWeek,
30 June 2026
Kara isn’t the only superhero with a tragic origin story – but unlike, say, that guy who dresses up as a bat and fights crime after the deaths of his mom and dad, Kara hits up a dive bar and plays with her dog to cope.
—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
25 June 2026
The artist performed some of the songs live in May at a gay dive bar in Los Angeles.
—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
24 June 2026
Saturday afternoon included a famed West Hollywood dive bar before the group on Sunday headed to Naval Base Coronado to mingle with service members on an aircraft carrier deck and see a NASCAR race.
—
Jami Ganz,
New York Daily News,
22 June 2026
With its Jewish delis, atmospheric dive bars, and underground music scene, the Mile End neighborhood minted the defining Montreal cool of the indie aughts—a place where cardiganed Italian grandmas rubbed shoulders with tattooed creatives.
—
Jen Rose Smith,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 June 2026
Room for Improvement is a cozy dive bar serving up fun takes on classic cocktails and snacks like the Red Snapper, Maine’s illustrious neon-red hot dog.
—
Jacqueline Dole,
Travel + Leisure,
13 June 2026
Many of the commercial strips in Omaha, a city of about half a million people, have the air of a nineties college town, with low-slung blocks of row houses punctuated by dive bars and cafés, thrift stores and record shops.
—
Hannah Goldfield,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
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Katelyn Umholtz,
Kansas City Star,
1 July 2026
Paymaster Lounge, Portland, Oregon A good dive bar rarely lends itself to outdoor seating.
—
Scott Hocker,
TheWeek,
30 June 2026
Kara isn’t the only superhero with a tragic origin story – but unlike, say, that guy who dresses up as a bat and fights crime after the deaths of his mom and dad, Kara hits up a dive bar and plays with her dog to cope.
—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
25 June 2026
The artist performed some of the songs live in May at a gay dive bar in Los Angeles.
—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
24 June 2026
Saturday afternoon included a famed West Hollywood dive bar before the group on Sunday headed to Naval Base Coronado to mingle with service members on an aircraft carrier deck and see a NASCAR race.
—
Jami Ganz,
New York Daily News,
22 June 2026
With its Jewish delis, atmospheric dive bars, and underground music scene, the Mile End neighborhood minted the defining Montreal cool of the indie aughts—a place where cardiganed Italian grandmas rubbed shoulders with tattooed creatives.
—
Jen Rose Smith,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 June 2026
Room for Improvement is a cozy dive bar serving up fun takes on classic cocktails and snacks like the Red Snapper, Maine’s illustrious neon-red hot dog.
—
Jacqueline Dole,
Travel + Leisure,
13 June 2026
Many of the commercial strips in Omaha, a city of about half a million people, have the air of a nineties college town, with low-slung blocks of row houses punctuated by dive bars and cafés, thrift stores and record shops.
—
Hannah Goldfield,
New Yorker,
8 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dive bar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dive%20bar. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.
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