Palpable

How to spell palpable

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce palpable

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does palpable mean?

1. adjectiveSo clear, strong, or intense that it can almost be physically felt; or, in a literal sense, able to be touched.

Palpable in a sentence

• The tension in the meeting room was palpable as the layoffs were announced.

• A palpable sense of relief spread through the crowd when the missing child was found.

Where does palpable come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb palpare, which meant 'to touch gently', 'to stroke', or 'to feel by handling'. From it Late Latin formed the adjective palpabilis, meaning 'able to be touched or felt'. English took the word in during the late 1300s, at first in the strict physical sense of something solid enough to be handled. Over time it broadened to describe feelings, tensions, and atmospheres so intense that they seem almost touchable, as in 'palpable relief'. The same palpare root survives in the medical verb 'palpate' (to examine a patient by feeling with the hands) and is a cousin of 'palpitate', so the steady 'palp' opening is the key to spelling all three.

How the word is built

• palp- (from Latin palpare: to touch or feel)
• -able (capable of being)