Word of the Day

: June 24, 2020

gourmand

noun GOOR-mahnd

What It Means

1 : one who is excessively fond of eating and drinking

2 : one who is heartily interested in good food and drink

gourmand in Context

"Their love was a tale of two gourmands. 'Marty and I fell in love and we loved to eat. Marty knew every restaurant in New York that did second helpings, and we knew every restaurant in Queens that didn't charge for dessert.'" — Marisa Meltzer, This Is Big, 2020

"Chefs and restaurants in South Florida are gearing up to offer gourmands a foodie fix with live streaming and video channels with cooking tutorials, designed specifically for their culinary fans who can't leave home because of COVID-19." — Rod Stafford Hagwood, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 29 Apr. 2020

Did You Know?

"What God has plagu'd us with this gourmaund guest?" As this exasperated question from Alexander Pope's 18th-century translation of Homer's Odyssey suggests, being a gourmand is not always a good thing. When gourmand began appearing in English texts in the 15th century, it was a decidedly bad thing, a synonym of glutton that was reserved for a greedy eater who consumed well past satiation. That negative connotation mostly remained until English speakers borrowed the similar-sounding (and much more positive) gourmet from French in the 19th century. Since then, the meaning of gourmand has softened so that although it still isn't wholly flattering, it now suggests someone who likes good food in large quantities rather than a slobbering glutton.