# palate

Pronunciation: say "PAL-uht" /ˈpæl.ət/

## Noun

1. The roof of the mouth in vertebrates, the partition that separates the mouth cavity from the nasal cavity.
   - Simple: The top inside part of the mouth. It separates the mouth from the nose in people and other animals with backbones.
   - _The surgeon repaired the gap in the child's palate before her first birthday._
   - _A sip of scalding coffee left a blister on his palate that stung for days._
2. A person's ability to tell different flavors apart and to appreciate them.
   - Simple: How well a person can taste different flavors, tell them apart and enjoy them.
   - _She has an unusually refined palate and can name every herb in a sauce._
   - _The judges' palates were tested with twenty olive oils in a single morning._
3. The taste or flavor of something, especially of a wine or other alcoholic drink.
   - Simple: The way something tastes, most often said about wine or other alcoholic drinks.
   - _The cider has a crisp, dry palate with a hint of green apple._
   - _The stout has a rich, malty palate and a long, bitter finish._
4. A relish of the mind; a liking or natural affinity for something.
   - Simple: What a person's mind enjoys or is drawn to.
   - _The producers softened the ending to suit the palate of a mainstream audience._
   - _Satire this sharp may be too strong for some palates._

## Verb

5. To relish something, or to find it palatable. *(nonstandard)*
   - Simple: To enjoy something, or to find it easy enough to accept.
   - _Many viewers could not palate the show's sudden change in tone._
   - _Some longtime customers found the price increase hard to palate._

## Noun

6. In insects, the mouthpart called the hypopharynx. *(rare)*
   - Simple: A part inside an insect's mouth, also called the hypopharynx.
   - _The diagram labels the palate of the grasshopper alongside the jaws and other mouthparts._
   - _The student dissected the beetle carefully to expose its palate._

## Other meanings

- (noun) In certain invertebrates, a part of the mouth that roughly corresponds to the roof of the mouth in vertebrates.
- (noun) In certain two-lipped flowers, such as the snapdragon, a bulge that projects into the throat of the flower.
- (noun) The roof of an animal's mouth, prepared and eaten as food.

## Origin

From Middle English palate, from Latin palātum ("roof of the mouth, palate"), which is perhaps of Etruscan origin.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/palate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).