soupçon

noun

soup·​çon süp-ˈsōⁿ  ˈsüp-ˌsän 

: a little bit : trace

a soupçon of suspicion

Did you know?

Culinary enthusiasts may think "soupçon" originated with a dash of garlic in the coq au vin or a splash of vanilla in the crème anglaise, but the etymology of the word has more to do with inklings and suspicions than with food. Sometime in the 18th century, English speakers borrowed "soupçon" from the French, who were using the word to mean "drop," "touch," or "suspicion." The Old French form of the word was "sospeçon," which in turn comes from the Latin forms suspection- and suspectio. Etymologists have further traced the word's Latin ancestry to the verb suspicere, meaning "to suspect." "Suspicere," as you might expect, is also the source of the English words "suspect" and "suspicion."

Synonyms

• sprinkling
• hint
• glimmer
• splash
• shred
• bit
• touch
• speck
• little
• tad

Examples of soupçon in a Sentence

Add just a soupçon of salt.

the book is filled with cynicism and sarcasm, along with a soupçon of existentialist angst

Word History

Etymology

French, literally, suspicion, from Old French sospeçon, from Latin suspection-, suspectio, from Latin suspicere to suspect — more at suspect

First Known Use

1766, in the meaning defined above

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!