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"It has become quite a common proverb that in wine there is truth," wrote the 1st-century A.D. Roman scholar, Pliny the Elder. The truth about the word wine is that it goes back to Latin vinum, but it is also a distant relative of the Greek word for wine, which is oinos. Indeed, Latin borrowed from the Greek to create a combining form that means "wine," oeno-. Modern French speakers combined oeno- with -phile (Greek for "lover of") to create oenophile before we adopted it from them in the mid-1800s. Oenophiles are sure to know oenology (now more often spelled enology) as the science of wine making and oenologist (now more often enologist) for one versed in oenology.
Examples of oenophile in a Sentence
AFAR Media, 14 July 2025
However, the current vintage delivers vibrancy, finesse, and tension, transporting oenophiles and novices alike to the ancient lava flows of Nun’s Canyon Vineyard in the Mayacamas Mountains, truly a sense of place.
—Michelle Williams, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Interestingly, the oenophile’s first foray into wine was sipping Portuguese rosé Lancers during grad school in the early 1960s.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 17 June 2025
These regions are quietly reshaping Spain’s wine scene for oenophiles seeking quiet travel without the crowds.
—Rachel King, Forbes.com, 9 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for oenophile
Cite this Entry
“Oenophile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oenophile. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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