comestible

1 of 2

adjective

: edible

comestible

2 of 2

noun

: food
usually used in plural

Did you know?

Did you expect comestible to be a noun meaning "food"? You're probably not alone. As it happens, comestible is used both as an adjective and a noun. The adjective is by far the older of the two; it has been part of English since at least the 1400s. In fact, one of its earliest known uses was in a text printed in 1483 by William Caxton, the man who established England's first printing press. The noun (which is most often used in the plural form comestibles) dates to the late 1700s.

Examples of comestible in a Sentence

Adjective some mushrooms are comfortably comestible, but others are decidedly poisonous Noun the gourmet food shop stocks a wide variety of comestibles from around the world
Recent Examples on the Web
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Adjective
Where there were once ingredients, there is now a comestible. Ryan Chapman, The New Yorker, 15 July 2022

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Medieval Latin comestibilis, from Latin comestus, past participle of comedere to eat, from com- + edere to eat — more at eat

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1799, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of comestible was in the 15th century

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Cite this Entry

“Comestible.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/comestible. Accessed 16 Jun. 2025.

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