relish |ˈreliSH| noun 1 great enjoyment: she swigged a mouthful of wine with relish. • liking for or pleasurable anticipation of something: I was appointed to a position for which I had little relish. 2 a condiment eaten with plain food to add flavor: use salsa as a relish with grilled meat or fish. 3 archaic an appetizing flavor. • a distinctive taste or tinge: the relish of wine. verb [ with obj. ] 1 enjoy greatly: he was relishing his moment of glory. • be pleased by or about: I don't relish the thought of waiting on an invalid for the next few months. 2 archaic make pleasant to the taste; add relish to: I have also a novel to relish my wine. DERIVATIVES relishable adjective ORIGIN Middle English: alteration of obsolete reles, from Old French, ‘remainder,’ from relaisser ‘to release.’ The early noun sense was ‘odor, taste,’ giving rise to ‘appetizing flavor, piquant taste’ (mid 17th cent.), and hence sense 2 of the noun (late 18th cent).