regale

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for May 13, 2019 is: regale \rih-GAIL\ verb

1 : to entertain [sumptuously](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sumptuously) : to feast with delicacies

2 : to give pleasure or amusement to

3 : to feast oneself : [feed](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/feed)

Examples:

"Mickelson regaled the 1,000 or so spectators at Monday's trophy ceremony on the 18th green by sharing how his late grandfather, Al Santos, was an original caddie here when Pebble Beach opened 100 years ago." — Cam Inman, The East Bay Times (Walnut Creek, California), 11 Feb. 2019

"The process of digestion, as I have been informed by anatomical friends, is one of the most wonderful works of nature. I do not know how it may be with others, but it is a great satisfaction to me to know, when regaling on my humble fare, that I am putting in motion the most beautiful machinery with which we have any acquaintance." — Charles Dickens, Martin Chuzzlewit, 1844

Did you know?

Regale has been an English verb since the early half of the 1600s; it was adapted from French régaler, which has the same meaning as regale. The French verb traces back to Middle French galer, which means "to have a good time," and, ultimately, to gale, meaning "pleasure." ([Gala](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gala), meaning "a festive celebration," is from the same source.) Regale also has a history as a [noun](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/regale#h2) meaning "a sumptuous feast." Early use of the noun appears in a 1670 notice: "My Lord Duke will not be able to get away yet…, all the regales that are intended for him not being yet at an end." (The man referred to is the Duke of Buccleuch, whose regales ended once and for all 15 years later when he was beheaded.)