prelibation

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pre·li·ba·tion

(prē′lī-bā′shən)

A foretaste.

[Latin praelībātiō, praelībātiōn-, from praelībātus, past participle of praelībāre, to taste beforehand : prae-, pre- + lībāre, pour out, to taste.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

prelibation

(ˌpriːlaɪˈbeɪʃən)

rare an advance taste or sample; foretaste

[C16: from Late Latin praelībātiō a tasting beforehand, offering of the first fruits, from Latin prae before + lībāre to taste]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

fore•taste

(n. ˈfɔrˌteɪst, ˈfoʊr-; v. fɔrˈteɪst, foʊr-)

n., v. -tast•ed, -tast•ing. n.

1. a slight and partial experience, knowledge, or taste of something to come in the future; anticipation.

v.t.

2. to have some advance experience or knowledge of (something to come).

[1400–50]

References in classic literature ?

Here let me observe, that for some time we had experienced the most uncomfortable weather as a prelibation of our future sufferings.

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(8) Anselm's words also typify a theme amongst monastic writers that was dubbed 'la prelibation du ciel' by Leclercq, and was developed most fully by the monk Peter of Celle.

Alimentary metaphors in Dante's "Paradiso"

(Author, hear thyself, page 161: "That's what an editor is before all else: a listener.") And let's not forget "prelibation (|foretaste')," defined as "a longing or craving or appetite the specific satisfier of which is not yet named." I'll spare the reader further, except to note that McCormack goes on to call writer's block "a failure of prelibation." Would that he suffered this condition!

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