luscious

English

Alternative forms

  • lushious (obsolete)

Etymology

From earlier lushious, lussyouse (luscious, richly sweet, delicious), a corruption of *lustious, from lusty (pleasant, delicious) + -ous. Shakespeare uses both lush (short for lushious) and lusty in the same sense: "How lush and lusty the grass looks" (The Tempest ii. I.52).

An alternative etymology connects luscious to a Middle English term: lucius, an alteration of licious, believed to be a shortening of delicious.

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -ʌʃəs

Adjective

luscious (comparative more luscious, superlative most luscious)

  1. sweet and pleasant; delicious
    • 1863, H.S. Thompson, Down by the River Liv'd a Maiden
      Her lips were like two luscious beefsteaks.
    • 1900, L. Frank Baum, The Wizard of Oz
      There were lovely patches of greensward all about, with stately trees bearing rich and luscious fruits.
  2. sexually appealing; seductive
    • 1749, John Cleland, Memoirs of Fanny Hill: A New and Genuine Edition from the Original Text
      With one hand he gently disclosed the lips of that luscious mouth of nature.
  3. obscene
    • 1749, John Cleland, Memoirs of Fanny Hill: A New and Genuine Edition from the Original Text
      Hitherto I had been indebted only to the girls of the house for the corruption of my innocence: their luscious talk, in which modesty was far from respected.

Translations

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