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Redolent

(pronounced red-uh-lunt or redl-unt)  adjective

Definition

1. fragrant; aromatic or sweet-smelling; emitting a rich mixture of distinctively pleasant or pungent odors. 2. having a perfumed smell; strongly smelling (of). 3. suggestive or reminiscent (of something); evocative.

Other Forms

Redolence  (pronounced red-uh-luns or redl-uns)  noun

Main Example

• If you’ve been watching news on television in recent weeks, you must have seen images of Republican lawmakers having to contend with noisy town halls, with many in the audience shouting “Shame! Shame!” and carrying signs reading “Do not repeal ACA”; “Repair not Repeal”; “Protect my Healthcare”; and so on. Aren’t these scenes redolent of 2010, when Democratic lawmakers had to face similarly hostile audiences, as Obamacare was about to become law?

Workplace Examples

• One reason why old-timers within the company have warmed so quickly to our executive VP Craig, who is a new hire, is that his manner of speaking, his personality, even his looks, are so redolent of our founder--the late Glen Smith. In fact, on more than one occasion, I have had this feeling that Mr. Smith is suddenly back with us...in a younger body!
• Talking about grocery stores, my clear favorite is the Flagship Randall’s near Memorial, especially their produce section. The display...the redolence...it’s unmatched.

Other Examples

• this author saying: “When it comes to international travel, the one place I want to visit again and again is Istanbul--formerly Constantinople and Byzantium--because it is so redolent with history.”
• after sniffing a full-bodied red wine, your friend--a wine connoisseur--remarking: “Yes, a very redolent wine! I find aromas of blackberry, juniper berry, cherry sauce, leather, vanilla...”
• the redolence of freshly brewed coffee, which some find to be almost intoxicating
• this author’s kitchen which can be redolent of curry; something that is redolent of sanctity; a recent magazine article that is redolent of Dickens because of how it depicts the human condition in a city slum
• a female colleague who has sophisticated tastes and who is always redolent of exquisite fragrance
• the widening investigations within Congress and the FBI into possible links between the Trump campaign and Russia now being referred to as “Trumpgate” because they are beginning to be redolent of Watergate

© 2017 V.J. Singal
No part of this may be reproduced in any form without written permission of the author.