Word of the Day

: April 26, 2021

epicure

noun EP-ih-kyur

What It Means

: one with sensitive and discriminating tastes especially in food or wine

epicure in Context

"At the back of the shop, Atwell and his apprentice, former chef Ryan Perrier, sharpen upwards of 3,500 blades a year on Japanese whetstones for a range of customers, including local chefs and at-home epicures." — Sara Anne Donnelly, Down East, June 2020

"Tucci has long been a masterful actor, but he has more recently unlocked a second career as an epicure and an object of internet thirst.… Searching for Italy, then, is a gift, equally wholesome in intention—Tucci tours Italy and explores how its food intermingles with its history—and knowing in subtext." — Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2021

Did You Know?

The word epicure is currently associated with indulging the appetite, but that is a long way from the teachings of the man to whom we owe the word. The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus taught a philosophy of simple pleasure, friendship, and a secluded life. He believed in the pursuit of pleasure, but pleasure for him comprised tranquility and freedom from pain—not the indulgence of the senses. Detractors of Epicurus in his own time and later, however, reduced his notions of pleasure to material and sensual gratification. When epicure entered English in the 16th century, it was synonymous with the modern term hedonist; later use carried the notion of refinement of palate that we see in the word today.