palatable

adjective pal·at·able \ ˈpa-lə-tə-bəl \

|Updated on: 19 Aug 2018

Tip: Synonym Guide

Examples: palatable in a Sentence

Editor's Note: How Should You Use palatable?

Definition of palatable

1 : agreeable to the palate or taste

The restaurant's chicken dishes are quite palatable.

2 : agreeable or acceptable to the mind

attempted to make physics palatable to a broader range of students

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palatability

play \ˌpa-lə-tə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun

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palatableness

noun

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palatably

play \ˈpa-lə-tə-blē\ adverb

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Examples of palatable in a Sentence

a less than palatable beer
I did not find the idea of moving again very palatable.

Recent Examples of palatable from the Web

Finally, for 4K Ultra HD and HDR streaming, the Chromecast Ultra is $54, down from $69, which makes its no-frills design much more palatable.

— alexandria haslam, PCWorld, "The Google Store's blowout sale has big deals on the Pixel 2 XL, Chromecast, and Google Home," 9 July 2018
That eye-popping price tag becomes a bit more palatable when bearing in mind that this midcentury beauty sits on over 40 acres, which includes a 900-square-foot guest house, pool, river frontage, and private access to conservation land.

— jenny xie, Curbed, "Marcel Breuer midcentury gem on 40 acres asks $1.9M," 29 June 2018
That’s a much more palatable conversation than the worthiness and workability of the amateur basketball model.

— christopher l. gasper, BostonGlobe.com, "There’s a dark cloud hanging over this year’s NCAA Tournament," 12 Mar. 2018
Mamma Help isn’t the only organization trying to help chemo patients find palatable food, reports Zahradnicek-Haas.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "This Beer Was Developed For Breast Cancer Patients," 9 July 2018
That might make lunching on locusts more palatable.

— The Economist, "The future of food, served up right here in augmented reality," 7 July 2018
Similarly, on the question of immigration enforcement, Ocasio-Cortez’s position is likely more palatable when rendered in concrete terms than in abstract ones.

— eric levitz, Daily Intelligencer, "Ocasio-Cortez’s Socialism Can Work In The Midwest – With a Rebrand," 3 July 2018
One way or another, James will package his decision to be palatable for the public.

— rohan nadkarni, SI.com, "The Lakers Always Made the Most Sense for LeBron James," 1 July 2018
Her statements have the quality and shelf-life of a hot dog bun — bland and palatable for a day before they’re contradicted by Donald Trump's tweets and policies.

— connie wang, refinery29.com, "For A Silent First Lady, Melania Trump’s Jacket Sends A Clear Message," 21 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'palatable.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

How Should You Use palatable?

Palatable comes from palate, a Latin-derived word for the roof of the mouth. The palate was once thought of as the seat of the sense of taste, so the word eventually came to mean "sense of taste," or broadly, "liking." Palatable has been used in English to refer to palate-pleasing foods since 1619, but it isn't our only—or our oldest—adjective for agreeable tastes. Savory dates from the 14th century. Toothsome has been around since 1551. Tasty was first used in the early 17th century. And appetizing has been gracing culinary reviews since 1653.

First Known Use of palatable

1662

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

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palatable Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of palatable

palatable, appetizing, savory, tasty, toothsome mean agreeable or pleasant especially to the sense of taste. palatable often applies to something that is found to be merely agreeable.