Etymograph

English

palpable

Palpable comes from Middle French palpable ‘touchable’, from Ancient Greek πάλλω ‘swing, shake, shake loose’, and perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pel-.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pel-1‘to drive, swing, shake’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-n-h₁-yé-ti1uncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπάλλω2pállō‘swing, shake, shake loose’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpalpō3‘to touch softly’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpalpābilis3‘that can be touched or felt, palpable’
  6. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600palpable3‘touchable’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1599–1602palpable3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πάλλω, which cites Beekes
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin palpo
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English palpable
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1599–1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke: “Osric: A hit, a very palpable hit.”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pel-Wiktionary, Ancient Greek πάλλω, which cites Beekes‘to drive, swing, shake’uncertain
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*pl̥-n-h₁-yé-tiWiktionary, Ancient Greek πάλλω, which cites Beekesuncertain
  3. Ancient Greekc. 800–300 BCEπάλλωWiktionary, Latin palpopállō‘swing, shake, shake loose’uncertain
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpalpōWiktionary, English palpable‘to touch softly’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpalpābilisWiktionary, English palpable‘that can be touched or felt, palpable’
  6. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600palpableWiktionary, English palpable‘touchable’
  7. Englishearliest quotation c. 1599–1602palpableWiktionary, English palpable. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: c. 1599–1602, William Shakespeare, The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke: “Osric: A hit, a very palpable hit.”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *pel- ‘to drive, swing, shake’

film, felt, simply, simple, push, filter, powder, complain, fold, pulse, pillow, repeal, flaw, compulsive, expel, pollen, repel, propel, palate, pelt, peloton, wallow, pollinate, pall, peplum, palatable, tuple, pulver, pillion, muffle, apoplexy, interpolate, palatal, 64 more

through Ancient Greek πάλλω ‘swing, shake, shake loose’

palladium, polemic, 12 more

Today it means

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

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “palpable”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Ancient Greek πάλλω, Latin palpo. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *pel- / palpable

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