phrase
dē gustibus nōn est disputandum
dē gustibus nōn est disputandum
Classical[deːˈɡʊs.tɪ.bʊs ˈnoː.nɛst dɪs.pʊˈtan.dũː]Ecclesiastical[deˈɡus.ti.bus ˈnɔː.nest dis.puˈtan.dum]
Meaning
- there's no accounting for taste (lit. 'one shouldn't discuss tastes.')
Et propterea de gustibus non est disputandum, eo quòd tot sint sententiae quot capita, ut est in proverbio.
And therefore there is no debate about taste, because there are as many opinions as there are heads, as the proverb goes.1584, Giuseppe Mascardi, Conclusiones omnium probationum, quae in utroque Foro quotidie versantur, Iudicibus, Advocatis, Causidicis, omnibus denique Iuris Pontoficii, Caesareique professoribus utiles, practicabiles, ac necessariae:[…] id enim fieri debet ob variam sensuum dispositionem, et sub hoc respectu verissimum est: de gustibus non est disputandum.
[…] indeed, it ought to be possible, on account of the varied array of inclinations [that exist], and in this respect it is very true: there's no accounting for taste1849, Franciscus Rothenflue, Institutiones philosophiae theoreticae in usum praelectionum, volume I, page 117:
Origins
Uncertain; likely of non-classical origin. An alternative, more recent form is de gustibus et coloribus non est disputandum (“there’s no arguing about tastes and colors”).