Meaning & use
relishing
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“relishing” is a form of “relish”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
verbtransitive
Getting great pleasure from something, often taking time to enjoy every bit of it.
Grammar: Takes an object: relishing the sunshine; it can also be followed by an -ing form: relishing being outdoors.
Patterns
- relishing something
- relishing doing something
He sat on the porch relishing the quiet after a busy week.
She was relishing every bite of the chocolate cake.
The team is relishing the chance to play in front of a home crowd.
verbtransitive
Looking forward to something with eager anticipation, especially a hard task or a contest.
Grammar: Takes an object and is used for things still ahead: relishing the challenge ahead.
Patterns
- relishing the prospect of something
- relishing the challenge
The young lawyer was relishing the prospect of her first big trial.
He was relishing the challenge of learning a new language.
Fans are relishing the rematch between the old rivals.
Word forms
| base form | relish |
|---|---|
| third person singular | relishes |
| past tense | relished |
| -ing form | relishing |
Common combinations
- relishing the challenge
- The new coach is relishing the challenge.
- relishing the moment
- She stood on the summit relishing the moment.
- relishing the prospect
- I am relishing the prospect of a long holiday.
- relishing every minute
- He is relishing every minute of retirement.
- relishing the opportunity
- The band is relishing the opportunity to tour abroad.
Synonyms and how they differ
- savoring
- Savoring suggests slowing down to enjoy something, while relishing can also mean looking forward with eagerness.
- enjoying
- Enjoying is the plain, everyday word, and relishing shows stronger and more open pleasure.
- loving
- Loving is informal and general, while relishing implies appreciating something in detail.
- delighting in
- Delighting in is more formal and emotional, while relishing is a little more physical and focused on the experience.
Opposites
Word family
- relish noun
- great enjoyment, or a savory sauce of chopped pickles
- relished verb
- enjoyed greatly
- relishes verb
- enjoys greatly
Commonly confused: relishing or relieving?
relishing vs relieving
Relieving means making pain or worry less. Relishing means enjoying something very much.
Practice
The climber was ___ the view from the summit after a hard day's walk.
Choose one answer.
Relishing means enjoying something greatly, which suits a climber admiring the view. Regretting and resenting express negative feelings, and relieving does not take view as an object here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “relishing”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.