Mess
A
mess is an area where military personnel socialize, eat, and live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined services eateries such as civilian fire fighting and police forces. The root of
mess is the Old French
mes, "portion of food", drawn from the Latin verb
mittere, meaning "to send" and "to put", the original sense being "a course of a meal put on the table". This sense of
mess, which appeared in English in the 13th century, was often used for cooked or liquid dishes in particular, as in the "mess of pottage". By the 15th century, a group of people who ate together was also called a
mess, and it is this sense that persists in the "mess halls" of the modern military.