palpable

Etymology

From Middle French palpable and its source, Latin palpābilis.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈpalpəbəl/
• (US) enPR: păl'pə-bəl, IPA^(key): /ˈpælpəbəl/

• Audio (US)

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Adjective

palpable (comparative more palpable, superlative most palpable)

1. Capable of being touched, felt or handled; touchable, tangible.

   Synonyms: tangible, touchable

   • c. 1600, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, act 5, scene 2:

     Osric: A hit, a very palpable hit.

   • 1838, Edgar Allan Poe, "Ligeia":

     I had felt that some palpable although invisible object had passed lightly by my person.

   • 1894, Bret Harte, "The Heir of the McHulishes" in A Protegee of Jack Hamlin's and Other Stories:

     The next morning the fog had given way to a palpable, horizontally driving rain.

2. Obvious or easily perceived; noticeable.

   Synonyms: manifest, noticeable, patent

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 5, in The Celebrity:

     Although the Celebrity was almost impervious to sarcasm, he was now beginning to exhibit visible signs of uneasiness, […] . It was with a palpable relief that he heard the first warning notes of the figure.

   • 1913, Sax Rohmer, The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu chapter 24:

     Her voice, her palpable agitation, prepared us for something extraordinary.

   • 1916, Kathleen Norris, The Heart of Rachael, chapter 7:

     No use in raging, in reasoning, in arguing. No use in setting forth the facts, the palpable right and wrong.

3. (medicine) That can be detected by palpation.

Etymology

Latin palpābilis.

Adjective

palpable (masculine and feminine plural palpables)

1. palpable

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin palpābilis.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pal.pabl/

Adjective

palpable (plural palpables)

1. palpable

   Antonym: impalpable

Further reading

• “palpable” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Adjective

palpable m, f (plural palpables)

1. touchable; palpable

References

• “palpable” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Adjective

palpable (plural palpables)

1. palpable