palpable

/ˈpælpəbəl/

//ˈpælpəbəl// adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"palpable" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“palpable” has 13 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #22,761. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#22,761
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
13
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Capable of being touched, felt or handled; touchable, tangible.

Corpus desk

Index EN-palpable · palpable · English

palpable · rank #22,761 · 13 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #22,761
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 13 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH paramedic

Nearest frequency peer: paramedic (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “palpable”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “palpable” sits against the nearest ranked English headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

palpable vs payable
75% similar
palpable vs parable
75% similar
palpable vs pliable
75% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for palpable
PropertyValue
Headwordpalpable
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ˈpælpəbəl/
Letters8
Frequency rank#22,761
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “palpable” sits in English frequency

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).palpablelands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “paramedic” (#22,762), “ornate” (#22,759), “patched” (#22,763). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 13 spelling variants around palpable (IPA /ˈpælpəbəl/), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #22,761 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for palpable, with forms such as "aplpable", "palapble", and "pallpable". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "payable", "parable", "pliable", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle French palpable and its source, Latin palpābilis, which is from palpō (“to touch softly”) + -bilis. The correct English form is palpable, spelled P-A-L-P-A-B-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Capable of being touched, felt or handled; touchable, tangible.
  2. 2
    Obvious or easily perceived; noticeable.
  3. 3
    That can be detected by palpation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how palpable appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Osric: A hit, a very palpable hit.
  2. The imagination shuns to reveal its workings, unless it can clothe them in some lovely and palpable shape, and create into existence the high romance, the mournful song, the animated canvass, or the carved marble;...

Etymology

From Middle French palpable and its source, Latin palpābilis, which is from palpō (“to touch softly”) + -bilis.

Antonyms

impalpable

This word in other languages

palpable(Español)palpable(Français)greifbar(Deutsch)palpável(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • aplpable
  • palapble
  • pallpable
  • palpabble
  • palpabel
  • palpablle
  • palpalbe
  • palpbale
  • palpible
  • palppable
  • paplable
  • plapable
  • ppalpable

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of palpable - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

aplpable2palapble2pallpable1palpabble1palpabel2palpablle1palpalbe2palpbale2
Edit distance from "palpable"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "palpable"?
"palpable" is spelled P-A-L-P-A-B-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈpælpəbəl/.
What does "palpable" mean?
As an adjective, "palpable" means: Capable of being touched, felt or handled; touchable, tangible.
What words are commonly confused with "palpable"?
"palpable" is commonly confused with "payable", "parable", "pliable". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "palpable"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "palpable" is /ˈpælpəbəl/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "palpable"?
From Middle French palpable and its source, Latin palpābilis, which is from palpō (“to touch softly”) + -bilis. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "palpable", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

perverse#22,766obedient#22,754purified#22,780Madeline#22,734

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (13 here; floor ≥5).

paramedic13 variantsnotoriety13 variantsmotorbike13 variantsradiology13 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "palpable". Here's where to go from here.

  • "palpable" maps to 5 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "payable". View pair
  • 13 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #22,761 among English headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more English words in the "P" letter cohort. P–Z browse
  • PlainSpell rotates a curated Word of the Day from the English corpus, a passive way to discover vocabulary. Word of the Day

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list