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Origin and history of fragrant

fragrant(adj.)

"affecting the sense of smell in a pleasing manner, having a noticeable perfume," mid-15c., from Latin fragrantem (nominative fragrans) "sweet-smelling," present participle of fragrare "smell strongly, emit (a sweet) odor," from Proto-Italic *fragro-, from PIE root *bhrag- "to smell" (source also of Old Irish broimm "break wind," Middle High German bræhen "to smell," Middle Dutch bracke, Old High German braccho "hound, setter;" see brach). Often used figuratively. Usually of pleasing or agreeable smells, but sometimes ironic. Related: Fragrantly.

also from mid-15c.

Entries linking to fragrant

brach(n.)

"bitch hound" (archaic), mid-14c., brache, originally "hound that hunts by scent," from Old French braches "hound, hunting dog," brachez, plural of brachet, a word of West Germanic origin (compare Middle Dutch brache, Old High German braccho "hound, setter"), from PIE root *bhrag- "to smell" (source also of Middle High German bræhen "to smell," Middle Irish bren "putrid, foul," perhaps also Latin fragrare "to smell sweetly"). Italian bracco is a Germanic loan word.

flair(n.)

mid-14c., "an odor," from Old French flaire "odor or scent," especially in hunting, "fragrance, sense of smell," from flairier "to give off an odor; stink; smell sweetly" (Modern French flairer), from Vulgar Latin *flagrare, a dissimilation of Latin fragrare "emit (a sweet) odor" (see fragrant). Sense of "special aptitude" is American English, 1925, probably from hunting and the notion of a hound's ability to track scent.

fragrance(n.)

1660s, from French fragrance or directly from Late Latin fragrantia, from stem of Latin fragrans "sweet-smelling" (see fragrant). Related: Fragrancy (1570s).

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