Word of the Day

Friday, November 21, 2008

Lucullan

\loo-KUHL-uhn\ , adjective;

rich; magnificent and luxurious

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Quotes:

In many calorie-conscious families, mini-meals have replaced Lucullan feasts.

-- Jane Abrams, Lima News, November 9, 1964

Before the first fight, scholars fancied they could read a sturdy moral in the contrast between the champion's spartan existence and the challenger's Lucullan revels.

-- Oakland Tribune, June 14, 1956

When literary groups meet in Paris, they also tend to eat and during the November rite of book awards, luncheons may reach a Lucullan level.

-- Jeanne Molli, Paris Links Pleasures Of Table and the Mind, New York Times, November 18, 1958

Origin:

by 1857, from Latin Lucullanus for Licinius Lucullus, a Roman general famous for his wealth and the luxury of his banquets