comestible

/kəˈmɛstəbəl/

/kəˈmɛstɪbəl/

Other forms: comestibles

Anything that you could possibly use for food is a comestible, a synonym of "edible." It can be used as a noun ("We shopped for comestibles") or an adjective ("It looked awful, but was comestible").

The word comestible, a rather formal-sounding word for food, has its roots in the Latin word comedere, which means "to eat up." Since comestible shares a background with the word consume, you will hopefully remember its meaning. Comestible was first recorded in the 15th century, and it bounced around as an adjective before becoming a noun in the 19th century.

Definitions of comestible

1. adjective

   suitable for use as food
   synonyms: eatable, edible

   killable

   fit to kill, especially for food

   non-poisonous, nonpoisonous, nontoxic

   safe to eat

   pareve, parve

   containing no meat or milk (or their derivatives) and thus eatable with both meat and dairy dishes according to the dietary laws of Judaism

   digestible

   capable of being converted into assimilable condition in the alimentary canal

   palatable, toothsome

   acceptable to the taste or mind

   tender

   easy to cut or chew
2. noun

   any substance that can be used as food
   synonyms: eatable, edible, pabulum, victual, victuals

   types:

   tuck

   eatables (especially sweets)

   type of:

   food, nutrient

   any substance that can be metabolized by an animal to give energy and build tissue