savour

A tasty word, and one for saving. No ascenders or descenders, just a neat little bar for munching. The echoes of saliva and slaver are aided by its sapid sense. The tongue starts in a slurping position, and the teeth and lips get into the act with an almost herbaceous v. We save our appetites for this one, and it is the palate’s saviour. Favour and fervor give positive overtones, and common command collocations (savour the flavours, savour the success, savour the experience, savour the moment…) make the taste buds snap to attention. As an added bonus, we spell it with a u, like a glass of wine with a meal – that decorative touch of class, and it makes it our word, not just anyone’s. This delicious word came to us from French and the other fine food languages, and ultimately from Latin saporem – so pour ’em another fine word and let us sip.