Dictionary.com | Meanings & Definitions of English Words (original) (raw)

palatable

adjective

1. palatable food.
   Synonyms: delectable, delicious
   Antonyms: distasteful, tasteless, unsavory, unpalatable
2. acceptable or agreeable to the mind or feelings:
   palatable ideas.
   Synonyms: satisfactory, pleasing

/ ˈpælətəbəl /

adjective

1. acceptable or satisfactory
   a palatable suggestion

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Derived Forms

• ˌpalataˈbility, noun
• ˈpalatably, adverb

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Other Words From

• pal·at·a·bil·i·ty [pal-, uh, -t, uh, -, bil, -i-tee], pal·at·a·ble·ness noun
• pal·at·a·bly adverb
• non·pal·at·a·ble adjective
• non·pal·at·a·bly adverb

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Word History and Origins

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Synonym Study

Palatable,

appetizing,

tasty,

savory

all refer to tastes or aromas pleasing to the palate and in some cases to the olfactory nerves.

Palatable

has the least positive connotation of these terms, often referring to food that is merely acceptable and not especially good:

a palatable, if undistinguished, main course; a barely palatable mixture of overcooked vegetables.

Appetizing

suggests stimulation of the appetite by the smell, taste of food, and is the only one of these words that can also refer to food pleasing to the eye:

the appetizing aroma of baking bread; the table contained an appetizing display of meats, cheeses, and salads.

Tasty

refers to food that has a notable or especially appealing taste:

mixed with bits of a tasty sausage; an especially tasty sauce.

Savory

refers most often to well or highly seasoned foods and applies to their appeal in both taste and smell:

a savory, succulent roast of beef, spiced with slivers of garlic; the savory aroma of a simmering duck sauce.

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Example Sentences

What terrifies me is that no amount of media scrutiny can hold JD accountable; he thrives on controversy and relishes the challenge of making radical ideas seem palatable.

Worse yet, some observers accused leading Democrats of cynically using the "middle class" as a palatable cover for neoliberal, corporate-friendly politics that worsened inequality and aimed to preserve the status quo rather than challenge it.

Right-wing political activists saw an opportunity to bring evangelical voters together with Republicans, but they needed a different issue from racial segregation to make the affiliation more palatable.

Despite Trump’s persistent misrepresentation that tariffs are paid by the target countries, politicians in the late 19th and early 20th centuries saw them as domestic taxes by another name — and more politically palatable.

Critics have dinged the proposal as a “cheap sweetener” meant to make a controversial package more palatable to voters.