Disgusts

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To evoke a powerful emotional response characterized by dislike or repulsion in someone
2. To stimulate feelings of strong aversion or distaste within an individual
3. Induces a deep feeling of revulsion or strong disapproval in someone

Etymology: "Disgusts" is simply the third-person singular form of "disgust," so the history belongs to the verb itself. The surprising part is how literal it began: the root idea is taste, not feeling. Old French "desgouster" meant "to put off one's appetite," built from "des-," a reversing prefix, and "gouster," "to taste," which descends from Latin "gustus," "a tasting." So at its core the word described food that no longer tempted you. English borrowed the word from Middle French "desgouster," and the noun "disgust" came from the verb. Over time the sense moved from a loss of appetite for food to a physical recoil from something unpleasant, and then to the stronger emotional reaction and moral disapproval the verb carries today. The verb's meaning is therefore the original idea of a rejected taste, extended to the mind.

Synonyms: repulses, offends, sickens, revolts, disturbs

Antonyms: pleases, delights, enthralls, enchants, comforts