It's the Word of the Day for October 24th.

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That's audible.combe. Today's word is Rancid, spelled RANC-I-D. Rancid is an adjective.

It usually describes something edible that has a strong and unpleasant smell or taste because it's no

longer fresh. In figurative use, Rancid describes things

that are very distasteful or offensive. Here's the word used in a sentence from the New York Times.

A great oil should smell green, fresh, alive, give it a sniff before pouring. Even once

vibrant olive oils can start to lose their aroma after a while.

If the oil smells bland, it's best for sauteing, roasting, or baking, rather than finishing.

If it smells rancid or waxy, toss it.

Rancid and putrid and fetid.

Oh my, all three words are used to describe unpleasant smells and tastes, and each

traces its roots to a stinky Latin word. Rancid can be traced back to Rancere. The root of

putrid shares an ancestor with putere, and fetid comes from photere, all verbs meaning to stink.

Not long after entering the language in the early 17th century,

Rancid also developed a second figurative sense, which is used for non-gustatory and non-ulphactory

senses, as in rancid hypocrisy. With your word of the day, I'm Peter Sakulowski.

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