sapid

American  

[sap-id] / ˈsæp ɪd /

adjective

1. having taste or flavor.

2. agreeable to the taste; palatable.

3. agreeable, as to the mind; to one's liking.

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sapid British  

/ ˈsæpɪd, səˈpɪdɪtɪ /

adjective

1. having a pleasant taste

2. agreeable or engaging

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Other Word Forms

• sapidity noun
• sapidness noun

Etymology

Origin of sapid

1625–35; < Latin sapidus tasty; cf. sage ¹

Explanation

Something that's sapid is very flavorful or savory. A sapid beef stew tastes rich and delicious. The adjective sapid is a fairly uncommon way to describe something with a rich, deep flavor. You can declare your grandmother's Thanksgiving feast sapid, though you may have to reassure her that it's a compliment — sapid is more often used in scientific or industry writing about food than in cooking magazines. It comes from the Latin sapidus, "savory, or having a taste," from the root sapere, which means both "to taste" and "to be wise."

Example Sentences

It’s a particularly toothsome, sapid red marked by notes of red fruit and spice, and a wonderful match with a wide range of foods.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025

Unlike animals raised in feedlots and pens, Stone Barns' animals oxygenate their muscles with all their ranging and grass-eating, and thereby develop more sapid meat.

From Time Magazine Archive

Butter-soft and sapid, Limburger has brought gustatory pleasure to millions of hardy gastronomes since it came to light in the province of Lüttich in Belgium.

From The Complete Book of Cheese by Brown, Robert Carlton

Although shad roe is esteemed the finest, there are many other sapid ones of salmon, herring, flounder, cod, etc.

From The Complete Book of Cheese by Brown, Robert Carlton

Its diseases arise from improper food, and are to be remedied by sapid medicines; while those of the medullary system are cured by olid substances.

From Lives of Eminent Zoologists, from Aristotle to Linnæus with Introductory remarks on the Study of Natural History by MacGillivray, William