Rancid

Origin

From Latin rancidus ("stinking, rank, rancid, offensive"), from ranceō ("to stink") (sense in Middle Latin), from whence also English rancor, in Latin used only in present participle rancens ("stinking").

Full definition of rancid

Adjective

1. Being rank in taste or smell.The house was deserted, with a rancid half-eaten meal still on the dinner table.
2. offensiveHis remarks were rancid; everyone got up and left.

Usage notes

Nouns to which "rancid" often gets applied: food, butter, meat, milk, fat, oil, smell, odor, taste.

Related terms

• rancidification
• rancidly
• rancidness
• rancor