Summary: Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 20, 2013 is: ragout \ra-GOO\ noun 1 : well-seasoned meat and vegetables cooked in a thick sauce 2 : mixture, mélange Examples: The movie is an ill-conceived ragout of fantasy, science fiction, and old-fashioned romance. "Chef Tin Huynh is cooking up a menu of northern and southern Italian favoritesthink pappardelle topped with pork ragout and balsamic-glazed octopus." From a restaurant review by Bao Ong in Gotham Magazine, November 19, 2013 Did you know? If you need an English word that can refer to either a combination of food items or a random assortment of things, there's no shortage of options on the menu. If you're in the mood for a stew, there's "hodgepodge" (formerly "hotchpotch"), "olla podrida," or "gallimaufry." Perhaps you'd rather start with a palate cleanser, like "macédoine" or "salmagundi." We also have "gumbo" or "jambalaya," if Southern cooking is more your thing, or "smorgasbord" if you prefer words of Swedish descent. Then there's today's word, "ragout," which comes from French "ragoûter," meaning "to revive the taste," and ultimately from Latin "gustus," meaning "taste."
