taste
Pronunciation: (tāst), [key]
— v., n. tast•ed, tast•ing,
—v.t.
- to try or test the flavor or quality of (something) by taking some into the mouth: to taste food.
- to eat or drink a little of: She barely tasted her dinner.
- to eat or drink (often used in negative constructions): He hadn't tasted food for three days.
- to perceive or distinguish the flavor of: to taste the wine in a sauce.
- to have or get experience, esp. a slight experience: these young men who had only begun to taste life.
- to perceive in any way.
- to enjoy or appreciate.
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- to examine by touch; feel.
- to test or try.
- See(def. 22).
—v.i.
- to try the flavor or quality of something.
- to eat or drink a little (usually fol. by of&hasp;): She tasted of the cake.
- to perceive or distinguish the flavor of anything.
- to have experience of something, however limited or slight.
- to have a particular flavor (often fol. by of&hasp;): The coffee tastes bitter. The bread tastes of mold.
- to smack or savor (usually fol. by of&hasp;): The story tastes of treason.
—n.
- the act of tasting food or drink.
- the sense by which the flavor or savor of things is perceived when they are brought into contact with the tongue.
- the sensation or quality as perceived by this sense; flavor.
- a small quantity tasted; a morsel, bit, or sip.
- a relish, liking, or partiality for something: a taste for music.
- the sense of what is fitting, harmonious, or beautiful; the perception and enjoyment of what constitutes excellence in the fine arts, literature, fashion, etc.
- the sense of what is seemly, polite, tactful, etc., to say or do in a given social situation.
- one's personal attitude or reaction toward an aesthetic phenomenon or social situation, regarded as either good or bad.
- the ideas of aesthetic excellence or of aesthetically valid forms prevailing in a culture or personal to an individual: a sample of Victorian taste; I consulted only my own taste in decorating this room.
- the formal idiom preferred by a certain artist or culture; style; manner: a façade in the Baroque taste.
- a slight experience or a sample of something: a taste of adventure.
- a feeling or sensation resulting from an experience: a compromise that left a bad taste in her mouth.
- test or trial.
- agreeable or pleasing to one: He couldn't find any ties that were completely to his taste.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.