epicure
Americannoun
-
a person who cultivates a refined taste, especially in food and wine; connoisseur.
- Synonyms:
- epicurean, gourmet, gastronome
- Antonyms:
- ascetic
-
Archaic. a person dedicated to sensual enjoyment.
- Synonyms:
- gourmand, sensualist, voluptuary
noun
-
a person who cultivates a discriminating palate for the enjoyment of good food and drink; gourmet
-
a person devoted to sensual pleasures
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of epicure
1350–1400 for earlier sense; 1555–65 epicure for def. 2; Middle English Epicures, Epicureis Epicureans (plural) < Latin Epicūrēus (singular) ( see epicurean)
Explanation
We call a person who truly loves food — food at the highest levels — an epicure. Occasionally, you might find the word epicure used for a person who loves something else, but an epicure is usually someone who delights in fine food. Epicurus was the Greek philosopher whom we credit with thinking the most about cooking and food. So any time you see the word epicure, remember that that person follows the philosopher Epicurus and therefore loves food. Being an epicure ain't cheap. Most fine restaurants these days will charge you an arm and a leg for a meal good enough to satisfy a real epicure.
Vocabulary lists containing epicure
The Tragedy of Macbeth
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act V
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Matilda
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As French epicure Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin famously put it, “Tell me what you eat: I will tell you what you are.”
From Washington Post ● Oct. 9, 2022
Connie is an epicure, a gourmand, a bon vivant, a lover and appreciator of fine food and drink.
From Salon ● Aug. 27, 2022
Jeffrey Merrihue, a marketing expert and “semi-pro” epicure, who had eaten in forty-one of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants, yelled to his wife, who had been to twenty-eight.
From The New Yorker ● Nov. 2, 2015
It had to be fine to beat JR and this is certainly a great, great novel by an epicure of language.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 22, 2013
Miss Honey said, "Do you know what an epicure is, Matilda?"
From "Matilda" by Roald Dahl
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
