Savories

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Food items that are delicious and often salty or spicy, typically served as appetizers or snacks
2. Dishes and snacks characterized by their rich flavors, usually contrasted with sweet options
3. A variety of flavorful foods that are enjoyable to eat, often including meats, cheeses, and vegetables

Etymology: "Savories" is the plural of "savory," and the noun sense for snacks is a shift from the word's original meaning of taste itself. The adjective traces back to Latin "sapor," meaning "taste" or "flavour," which came from "sapere," to taste of or have a flavour. That Latin root passed through Late Latin "sapōrāre" and Old French "savourer" before reaching Middle English as "savory," where it described anything pleasing to the palate. The noun used for these small, salty or spicy bites is a separate development in English, and it is worth distinguishing from the herb "savory," a different word. That herb has its own tangled history: it comes from Latin "satureia," and the English form was probably influenced by Old French "savereie" on the way into Middle English as "saverey." The two words only look alike because both came to English through French-influenced spellings of Latin terms for flavour.

Synonyms: delicacies, treats, snacks

Antonyms: sweets, desserts