Gustatory
Adjective
- Concerned with tasting or the sense of taste.
Example Sentences
“His gustatory abilities were so refined, he was made a judge in the esteemed wine competition.”
“Susie’s cold prevented her from appreciating the gustatory delights of the home-cooked meal.”
“The sense of smell contributes to our gustatory abilities just as much as taste buds do.”
Word Origin
Latin, late 17th century
Why this word?
“Gustatory” is an adjective concerned with anything related to taste, joining other sense-related terms such as “aural” (hearing), “olfactory” (smell), “visual” (sight), and “tactile” (touch). “Gustatory” can describe the quality of a taste — sweet, salty, sour, or bitter — or it can refer to the mechanics and process of tasting something. In Disney’s 2007 film “Ratatouille,” the main (animal) character Remy seems to have a condition called “gustatory-visual synesthesia,” meaning he can “see” taste and flavors. This makes him quite adept at throwing together fantastically inventive recipes. The adjective “gustatory” may also have inspired the name of Remy’s idol, the fictional legendary chef Auguste Gusteau, as it comes from the Latin verb “gustāt-,” meaning “to taste.”
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