rancid
adjective
ran·cid
ˈran(t)-səd
1
: having an unpleasant smell or taste usually from chemical change or decomposition
rancid butter
rancid breath
2
: distinctly unpleasant or distasteful : offensive
a rancid sexual scandal
Without free speech, even in its most rancid forms, we may have nothing to choose at night but old movies and "Heeeeeeeere's Johnny!"—Richard Corliss
Did you know?
Rancid and putrid and fetid—oh my! All three words are used to describe unpleasant smells and tastes, and each traces its roots to a "stinky" Latin word: rancid can be traced back to rancēre; the root of putrid shares an ancestor with putēre; and fetid comes from foetēre—all verbs meaning "to stink." Not long after entering the language in the early 17th century, rancid also developed a second, figurative sense which is used for non-gustatory and non-olfactory offenses, as in "rancid hypocrisy."
Cite this Entry
“Rancid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rancid. Accessed 6 Sep. 2026.
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