Words that tell how something tastes
Read this.
“Ava ate a plum.”
Now read this.
“Ava ate a sour plum.”
One word and you can almost taste it. Your face probably moved a little.
Taste words are describing words. They tell you what something is like when you put it in your mouth.
The main taste words
- sweet like honey or a ripe peach
- sour like a lemon
- salty like a pretzel
- bitter like the white part of an orange peel
- spicy like hot peppers
Those five cover most of what you eat. There are others, like plain and buttery and fresh.
Where these words go
You already know the two spots. A describing word sits in front of a naming word or after is and are.
| In front | After is or are |
|---|---|
| a sour plum | The plum is sour. |
| salty crackers | The crackers are salty. |
| sweet corn | The corn is sweet. |
A better word than good
When you write about food, “good” tells the reader almost nothing.
“The soup was good.”
“The soup was salty.”
The second one puts a taste in the reader’s mouth. Reach for the exact word when you have one.
Your turn
Which taste word fits best?
- a lemon
- a pretzel
- a ripe peach
Check your answers
- “sour”
- “salty”
- “sweet”
Remember
- Taste words tell what something is like in your mouth.
- Sweet and sour and salty and bitter and spicy are the main ones.
- An exact taste word beats the word good.