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Zest vs Eager - What's the difference?

zest | eager |

As nouns the difference between zest and eager

is that zest is gesture while eager is (tidal bore).

As an adjective eager is

(obsolete) sharp; sour; acid.

zest

English

Noun

(wikipedia zest)
  • The outer skin of a citrus fruit, used as a flavouring or garnish.
    • The orange zest gives the strong flavors in this dish.
  • (by extension) Enthusiasm; keen enjoyment; relish; gusto.
    • Auntie Mame had a real zest for life.
  • * Young
    • Almighty Vanity! to thee they owe / Their zest of pleasure, and their balm of woe.
  • * Gogan
    • Liberality of disposition and conduct gives the highest zest and relish to social intercourse.
  • The woody, thick skin enclosing the kernel of a walnut.
  • * 2006 , N. J. Nusha, On the edge: short stories (page 85)
    • The green zest of walnuts was used by the women to shine their teeth and it also gave a beautiful rust colour to their lips.

    Related terms

    () * zestful * zestfully * zesty

    Synonyms

    * (enthusiasm) gusto * spice, relish, tang

    Verb

  • (cooking) To scrape the zest from a fruit
  • To make more zesty
    • ----

    eager

    English

    (Webster 1913)

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) eger, from (etyl) egre (French aigre), from (etyl) ; see acid, acerb, etc. Compare vinegar, alegar.

    Adjective

    (er)
  • (obsolete) Sharp; sour; acid.
  • * Shakespeare
    • like eager droppings into milk
  • (obsolete) Sharp; keen; bitter; severe.
  • * Shakespeare
    • eager words
  • * Shakespeare
    • a nipping and an eager air
  • (rfc-sense) Excited by desire in the pursuit of any object; ardent to pursue, perform, or obtain; keenly desirous; hotly longing; earnest; zealous; impetuous; vehement.
  • * Keble
    • When to her eager lips is brought / Her infant's thrilling kiss.
  • * Hawthorne
    • a crowd of eager and curious schoolboys
  • * {{quote-book, year=1963, author=(Margery Allingham), title=(The China Governess)
    • , chapter=19 citation , passage=When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. […]. The captive made no resistance and came not only quietly but in a series of eager little rushes like a timid dog on a choke chain.}}
  • Brittle; inflexible; not ductile.
  • * John Locke
    • Gold will be sometimes so eager , as artists call it, that it will as little endure the hammer as glass itself.
  • (comptheory) Not employing lazy evaluation; calculating results immediately, rather than deferring calculation until they are required.
    • an eager algorithm
    Synonyms
    * raring
    Derived terms
    * eager beaver * eagerly * eagerness

    Etymology 2

    See (m).

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (tidal bore).

    • External links

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    Anagrams

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