Entertaining is something that we all do from time to time in our lives. Some do it more than others while some do it quite rarely. Frequency aside entertaining is one of the most common and enjoyable of activities, that is practiced by every culture on the planet. But what is it really? The most common idea brought to mind is simply bringing people over for dinner but it is much more than that.While the basic concept of entertaining usually involves food there is no set rule that it has to be formal and also no set rule that it has to be standardized by any means. When you invite people into your home you are entertaining but the type, theme, and mood of the event is completely up to you. Many people choose to throw special parties and get togethers during the holiday seasons and may or may not put up impressive displays of decorations.These parties and gatherings are the ones where family members gather in addition to friends, which makes them even more enjoyable. Of course you don’t have to wait for a holiday to entertain people in your home. Any excuse will do from a new promotion, new home, new baby on the way, or you may need no excuse at all. The themes for the events are also as varied as the people hosting them.As mentioned there are massive holiday gatherings but what do most people do when they simply want the company of friends? Well the most common form of entertaining practiced by the everyday person is to order a pizza and watch a movie. This is typically performed for a simple social gathering of friends and can last all night if the company and movies are good enough.More formal gatherings like dinner parties or social events are usually more about meeting people for the first time or entertaining important people. This is less of a friendly atmosphere and more of a professional form of interaction but it is still nonetheless important. The scale of the gathering also differs from events and themes.A typical social gathering between friends can be as small as two and as large as thirty. A formal gathering for a new member of the community or a professional meeting can be from thirty to five hundred. It all depends on when, where, who, and why. There are even some people who make a living out of entertaining and planning large scale events for parties and gatherings. This as you can imagine is a very hectic but rewarding career path.Then you add in all of the caterers and performers for large events and entertaining becomes more complicated but also more fun. The end goal is for people to mingle, enjoy themselves, and eat good food. There may also be business related purposes to some meetings but at its core entertaining is about getting to know other people.Entertaining has many forms, themes, purposes, and crowd sizes. What your guests will be treated to is entirely up to you. Everything ranging from the simple movie night and pizza to the formal dinner parties with complicated meals is at your disposal. So the only thing left to ponder is how you will entertain your guests when they arrive at your home and how long the occasion will last.