gusto
/ˈɡʌstəʊ
/noun [mass noun]
1Enjoyment and enthusiasm in doing something: Hawkins tucked into his breakfast with gusto...
- He appeared completely recovered as he slid into his seat with a smile and ate his large breakfast with gusto.
- I taped the liturgy, played the tape in the car, and sang along with gusto.
- In the musical numbers soloists and chorus sang with gusto.
Synonyms
enthusiasm, relish, appetite, enjoyment, delight, glee, pleasure, satisfaction, gratification, appreciation, liking, fondness;
zest, zeal, fervour, verve, keenness, avidity
humorous delectation
1.1 [in singular] archaic A relish or liking: he had a particular gusto for those sort of performances...
- He had a grand gusto for the society he liked.
2 archaic The style in which a work of art is executed.We should think that in the gusto of form and a noble freedom of outline, Michael Angelo could hardly have surpassed this figure.
Origin
Early 17th century: from Italian, from Latin gustus 'taste'.
If you do something with gusto, you do it with real relish or enjoyment. The word is borrowed from Italian, and came from Latin gustus ‘taste’, source also of disgust (late 16th century). One of its early meanings was ‘a particular liking for something’, as in this line from William Wycherley's play Love in a Wood (1672): ‘Why should you force wine upon us? We are not all of your gusto.’ This sense eventually dropped out of use, with the ‘keen enjoyment’ sense becoming common from the beginning of the 19th century.