# relish

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈɹɛlɪʃ/ · frequency rank #19,188

## Definitions
1. Flavour or taste; (countable) an instance of this.
2. Followed by for: one's liking or taste for something; a fondness.
3. A small amount; a tinge, a trace.
4. Ability to taste or (figurative) enjoy.
5. Particular quality; (countable) an instance of this; a characteristic or quality.
6. Enjoyment of flavour or taste; (countable) an instance of this.
7. Enjoyment of something pleasant; (countable) an instance of this.
8. Appetizing or pleasant flavour or taste; (countable) an instance of this.
9. Pleasant quality; (countable) an instance of this.
10. A savoury dish or course of dishes, especially one accompanying rather than forming the main part of a meal; an appetizer, a side dish.
11. A savoury dish or course of dishes, especially one accompanying rather than forming the main part of a meal; an appetizer, a side dish.
12. A condiment or sauce added to food for a spicy or tangy flavour; specifically, one made with chopped, pickled fruit or vegetables.

## Etymology
The noun is a variant of release (“(obsolete) odour, scent”), from Middle English reles, relese (“odour, scent; taste; efficacy, power”), probably from Anglo-Norman reles, relais, or Old French reles, relais (“that which is left behind, remainder, residue”), from relaisser, relaschier (“to liberate, release; to relax”) (modern French relâcher), from Latin relaxāre, the present active infinitive of relaxō (“to stretch out or widen again, loosen, slacken; (figurative) to ease, relax”), from re- (prefix meaning ‘again; back, backwards’) + laxō (“to release, undo; to relax”) (from laxus (“spacious, wide; loose, slack”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)leg- (“to slacken; to tire out”)) + -ō (suffix forming regular first-conjugation verbs)). Doublet of release.
The verb is derived from the noun.

## Easily confused with
- **Revis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relish-vs-revis)
- **resist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relish-vs-resist)
- **revise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relish-vs-revise)
- **relive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relish-vs-relive)
- **remiss** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relish-vs-remiss)
- **reis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/reis-vs-relish)
- **Reich** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/reich-vs-relish)
- **relic** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relic-vs-relish)
- **Regis** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/regis-vs-relish)
- **relief** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relief-vs-relish)
- **relics** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/relics-vs-relish)
- **radish** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/radish-vs-relish)
- **realise** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/realise-vs-relish)
- **realism** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/realism-vs-relish)
- **reddish** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/reddish-vs-relish)
- **realist** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/realist-vs-relish)

## Common misspellings (9)
`erlish`, `reilsh`, `relihs`, `relishh`, `relissh`, `rellish`, `relsih`, `rleish`, `rrelish`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/relish