gourmet
English
Etymology
Borrowed from French gourmet, from Middle French gourmet, from Old French groumet (“wine broker, valet in charge of wines, servant”) from grommes (“manservant”), of Germanic origin, akin to Middle English grom, grome (“boy, valet, servant”), of unknown origin, perhaps from Old English *grōma (“male child, boy, youth”) from grōwan (“to grow”). More at groom.
Adjective
gourmet (not comparable)
- (of food and drink) Fine; of superior quality. [from 1820]
- We need to go to the gourmet grocery store to get the exotic ingredients for this recipe.
- The restaurant offered gourmet coffee and cigars after the meal.
Usage notes
Gourmet has become somewhat debased by marketing usage, and is considered by some a pretentious middlebrow term. Such users tend to prefer terms such as artisanal (emphasizing the craft) for fine food.
Coordinate terms
Translations
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Noun
gourmet (plural gourmets)
- A connoisseur in eating and drinking; someone who takes their food seriously.
Usage notes
Gourmet emphasizes interest in quality of food and enjoyment of eating, sometimes to an obsessive degree: someone who “lives to eat rather than eating to live”. By contrast, a gourmand is someone more interested in quantity of food than quality.
Synonyms
Translations
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Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɣuːrˈmɛt/, /ɡuːrˈmɛt/
Noun
gourmet m (plural gourmets, diminutive gourmetje n)
Derived terms
- gourmetten
- gourmetpan
- gourmetset
Etymology 2
See the etymology of the main entry.
Verb
gourmet
Finnish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈɡurmeː/, [ˈɡurme̞ː]
- Hyphenation: gour‧met
Declension
Inflection of gourmet (Kotus type 22/parfait, no gradation) | |||
---|---|---|---|
nominative | gourmet | gourmet’t | |
genitive | gourmet’n | gourmet’iden gourmet’itten | |
partitive | gourmet’ta | gourmet’ita | |
illative | gourmet’hen | gourmet’ihin | |
singular | plural | ||
nominative | gourmet | gourmet’t | |
accusative | nom. | gourmet | gourmet’t |
gen. | gourmet’n | ||
genitive | gourmet’n | gourmet’iden gourmet’itten | |
partitive | gourmet’ta | gourmet’ita | |
inessive | gourmet’ssa | gourmet’issa | |
elative | gourmet’sta | gourmet’ista | |
illative | gourmet’hen | gourmet’ihin | |
adessive | gourmet’lla | gourmet’illa | |
ablative | gourmet’lta | gourmet’ilta | |
allative | gourmet’lle | gourmet’ille | |
essive | gourmet’na | gourmet’ina | |
translative | gourmet’ksi | gourmet’iksi | |
instructive | — | gourmet’in | |
abessive | gourmet’tta | gourmet’itta | |
comitative | — | gourmet’ine |
Declension
Inflection of gourmet (Kotus type 22/parfait, no gradation) | |||
---|---|---|---|
nominative | gourmet | gourmet’t | |
genitive | gourmet’n | gourmet’iden gourmet’itten | |
partitive | gourmet’ta | gourmet’ita | |
illative | gourmet’hen | gourmet’ihin | |
singular | plural | ||
nominative | gourmet | gourmet’t | |
accusative | nom. | gourmet | gourmet’t |
gen. | gourmet’n | ||
genitive | gourmet’n | gourmet’iden gourmet’itten | |
partitive | gourmet’ta | gourmet’ita | |
inessive | gourmet’ssa | gourmet’issa | |
elative | gourmet’sta | gourmet’ista | |
illative | gourmet’hen | gourmet’ihin | |
adessive | gourmet’lla | gourmet’illa | |
ablative | gourmet’lta | gourmet’ilta | |
allative | gourmet’lle | gourmet’ille | |
essive | gourmet’na | gourmet’ina | |
translative | gourmet’ksi | gourmet’iksi | |
instructive | — | gourmet’in | |
abessive | gourmet’tta | gourmet’itta | |
comitative | — | gourmet’ineen |
French
Etymology
Middle French gourmet, from Old French groumet (“wine broker, valet in charge of wines, servant”) from Old French grommes (“manservant”), from Middle English grom, grome (“boy, valet, servant”) of unknown origin, perhaps from Old English *grōma (“male child, boy, youth”) from Old English grōwan (“to grow”). More at groom.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɡuʁ.mɛ/
Audio (file)
Noun
gourmet m (plural gourmets)
- (of wines) a wine expert, especially one who is adept at determining the label, date, and sundry other qualities solely by smatch
- (more commonly) a culinary connoisseur, gourmet
Further reading
- “gourmet” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Portuguese
Alternative forms
- gurmê (rare)