"Taste" - The Definition

[DonRocks]

In my usual curious mode, I Googled the word "taste," wanting to know exactly, precisely what it meant.

On Wikipedia, I found the following as the first sentence which took me aback:

---

"Taste (also called smatch or gustation; adjectival form: gustatory) is one of the traditional five senses."

---

Smatch? I'd never heard of this word, and when I Google it, I don't find much. Really? Smatch? What is it?

[ol_ironstomach]

Beats me. Maybe some local variant on gut schmeckt?

[Anna Phor]

From the Oxford English Dictionary:

smatch, n.1

Forms: ME smecch, ME smech; ME, 15–16 smach, ME–15 smache, smatche, 15– smatch.

Etymology: Middle English smech , smach , apparently an alteration of Old Englishsmæc smack n.¹, under the influence of smatch v.

Taste, smack, flavour; †also, the sense of taste.

smatch, v

Forms: α. OE smeccan, ME smecchen, smechen; pa. tense smeihte, pa. pple. i-smeiht, i-smecched... (Show More)

Etymology: Old English (ge)smeccan and smæccan , < smæc smack n.¹ Compare Old Frisian smekka , smetsa (West Frisian smeitsje ), Middle Low German and Low Germansmecken , Old High German smecchen (German schmecken ). Finally supplanted by the later smack v.¹

It's new to me! At least one of the OED entries is marked obselete--on top of which, the most recent citation for the non-obsolete entry is 1892. So I think time of death can probably be called on this one ...

[B.A.R.]

Try finding "smatch" using Google Images. It is very insightful.

[jayandstacey]

I never really liked the smatch of Welsh Rabbit anyway.