New game

Guess the taste

The card is face down. Bring attention to your tongue and sensations in your mouth, choose your first response, then reveal the card.

0correct

0answers

—accuracy

0best streak

Number of choices

Fewer choices make guessing easier. A new set is randomly selected from the five sensations for each round.

Chance of a random hit: 20%

Selecting and sealing the set…

Inner Compass

A taste sensation rather than an image

Five cards: honey for sweet, a salt-brined pickle for salty, lemon for sour, wormwood for bitter and chili for spicy. Foods are symbolic categories: a pickle may also be sour. This is a guessing game focused on sensations.

Where to focus

Notice the first taste sensation, even if it is faint. Do not try to produce a particular taste; if there is no clear sensation, choose your first response.

Selected in advance

Choose two to five options. Every option in the set is equally likely: a random hit ranges from 50% with two choices to 20% with five. Verify the full set and card after answering.

The physiology of taste

Sweet, salty, sour, bitter and umami are five basic tastes. Their receptors are not confined to separate tongue zones. Spiciness is a burning sensation that may be felt on the tongue, lips and oral lining. This game uses four tastes plus spiciness; umami is not in the set.

NIDCD: taste perception · InformedHealth: taste and spiciness

2–5 choices · equal probability · reveal after answering