palatable
adjective
Did you know?
How should you use palatable?
It may be a coincidence that you can’t spell the word palatable without all of the letters in plate (the two words are etymologically unrelated), but this fact may help you remember that palatable is synonymous with a host of words that can describe an enjoyable meal, from tasty to toothsome. Alternatively, you could just stick your finger in your mouth and touch the roof of your mouth, aka your palate. As the palate was once considered the seat of one’s sense of taste, so the word palate eventually came to refer to both a literal and figurative sense of taste (as in “architecture too ornate for my palate”). The adjective palatable arose from palate (via the now-rare verb palate defined in our Unabridged dictionary as “to taste or relish”) in the 17th century, and functions similarly. Seasonings from adobo to za’atar make food more palatable, certainly, but ideas and advice can be made more palatable, too. As a wise woman once sang, a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.
Synonyms of palatable
Examples of palatable in a Sentence
Jordan Minor, PC Magazine, 12 June 2026
Every budget fix will have its critics, but some options are more palatable than others.
—Martha Gimbel, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026
We have been conditioned to believe that loving care requires the constant presence of highly palatable reward, rebranding the slow-motion collapse of metabolic health as a form of kindness.
—Joshua Moen, STAT, 8 June 2026
Each pavé stone, crystalized seed, and dangling jewel has been polished and perfected almost obsessively, making those three-figure price tags more palatable.
—Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 4 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for palatable
Cite this Entry
“Palatable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/palatable. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
Copy Citation
