More words that are easy to confuse.

Palette/ palate           

The noun palette refers to a thin board held by painters, containing the colors used to create an artwork. An artist’s palette can also mean the types of different colors chosen for a specific work of art. Students and ajarns who work in computer graphics will recognize that the noun palette means the range of colors and shapes that may be used in a given program. The word originates from a Latin term meaning shovel or spade, describing the approximate shape of the board held by artists, slightly resembling a shovel. The noun palate means the roof of the mouth. The palate is found between the mouth and nose. Palate is also used to describe the sense of taste, or someone’s skill at tasting different flavors in food or wine. It originates from a different Latin word, meaning the roof of the mouth or sense of taste. Here are some examples of usage:

• The roundness and refreshing ripe grape palate also delicately cleansed and refreshed the mouth. The Bordeaux blend was also soft to the palate with a hint of spice and liquorice that subtly enhanced the fruity apple syrup.
• An omakase sushi meal often starts with an appetiser that preps the palate and whets the appetite, then continues from light flavours to heavier, heartier ones – from red snapper, tuna amani to fattier, richer chu toro (fatty tuna), sea urchin, salmon egg and so forth.
• At the Chow Bar tasting led by brand ambassador Darren Hosie, the fans noticed pineapple, vanilla and perfume in the bouquet, while on the palate it was warm and sweet with hints of honey, almond and spice. Soft, mellow and pleasant, it has the distinct character of classic Speyside whisky.
• From plate to palate.
• Graphic designer Pairoj Pittayamatee introduces his rich palette of natural colours that are unique to the Kingdom. The result of his analysis has led to the development of what he calls “Thaitone”, a rich palette featuring 150 tropical shades each marked with CMYK colour codes for standard printing. Each colour is named after old Thai artisans or given a title that probably won’t be familiar to younger Thais. Thaitone palettes can be transformed into industrial paints ideal for the renovation of traditional architectural structures as well as contemporary Thai houses,” says Puangpen Saengpetch, the marketing director of TOA Paint. “We normally follow the Western colour trends and try to present different colour palettes to our customers to meet the design forecast of each year.”
• Using an eye shadow primer extends wear even longer and the “IT Palette Delicate Nude” contains 12 soft and delicate ready-to-wear shades in a chic and stylish pouch, and a multitude of possibilities to bring out any eye colour, including green, brown and blue. The “Contouring 101 Face Palette” creates such contouring effects using dark and light shades. With an angled brush in one hand and the Contouring Palette in the other, apply a dark shade to the parts of the face to sculpt, then highlight those that deserved to be emphasised.
• For its autumn-winter 2016 collection, Vickteerut has decided to play with light. “The silhouette, detail, and colour palette all relate to light,” Aurapraphan explained. The colour palette remains basic white, grey, black, brown and beige with blue, green and red serving to create optical illusions. The colour palette of white, black, cream and navy is enhanced by rose blush, ecru, pistachio, tawny, and mignonette green and silver.
• The primary palette is red and gold for the collection, although the Gradient Twist tumbler adds a splash of orange and the Rooster tumbler mixes purple into its gold graphic.
• The colour palette included white, black, grey and dark blue. Semi-couture outfit, La Boutique by To Phatchawatt, added colour to spring 2017 with a palette of shocking pink, flamingo feather pink, cherry red, mustard yellow, cobalt blue, Egyptian blue and shimmering gold for a collection called “Hyphy Dudette”.
• The palette is dark, rich and seductive in black, deep red and olive, colouring lace, velvet, satin, lacquered nylon and sporty fabrics. Here the palette runs from black and navy to camel and charcoal, playing off lilac and forest green. 
• Gold were chosen as the signature hues for 2015 and 2016, Denim Drift appears to share the same palette of Indigo and Teal that were announced as the key colours of 2013 and 2014 respectively. To underline that colour palettes are not designed just for interior and architecture design, the company partnered with Vietnam’s Elle magazine to present a fashion runway showing how denim shades act as key visuals for Vietnamese designers Dieu Anh and Giao Linh. “In general terms, colours reflect the way we feel at three levels. At the human level, red increases appetite and excitement while yellow is optimistic and purple is a bit of mystery. Next is the cultural level. In Thailand, this tends to be yellow because of its significance to many Thais. The last is the personal level. If you support Chelsea football team for example, blue is special to you. Clever designers will use the colour palette in the right way to associate with culture and personal need.” The complement of nature-inspired palettes of blue, green and pale purple can create a calm and inviting mood.
• The “Shared Individualism” trend offers calming and warm palettes like denim and pale peony to create a shared space to enjoy together while pockets of individuality are put alongside in contrasting colours like lime and coral. Uncluttered and uncomplicated design with a white and neutral palette allows people to focus more on sensory experiences rather than possessions.
• In addition to the range of more than 2,000 colour palettes from which to choose is Dulux Ambiance, a series of special-effect wall paints that give off a linen, marble, metallic or velvet feel.

As we can see, both words appear frequently in English writing and are useful terms for describing taste or a range of colors. Since they sound exactly alike when pronounced and are spelled in a similar way, the challenge remains to remember which spelling applies to which meaning. If we invent a little story, it may help us to tell one word from another. For example:

My pal at the restaurant has a fine palate.

The above sentence should remind us that when we mean to refer to taste or gourmet skills, the letters used in spelling the word should include palat and not palet.

Here is another example of a sentence to be remembered:

Chuencha’s fine palate helped her remember what she ate.

The point of the sentence above is that the word palate, associated with the mouth, food, and tasting, ends with the same three letters that are in the word ate. If we keep this in mind, we are less likely to make the mistake of trying to spell with word with the letters ette as an ending, if what we mean is palate. Another way to avoid error might be to think about the word ending ette in palette. The letters ette are sometimes found in English words that have a French origin. The original meaning of these letters is refer to something small, so a cigarette is a smaller version of a cigar. A rosette is a little rose-shaped decoration awarded as a medal to people for extraordinary service. A cassette is a small case for holding something. A palette is a small shovel-shaped object held in one hand by a painter. Also, the word ending ette can mean a female version of something. So a drum majorette is a woman who performs the same function as a drum major in a marching band. Some such feminine terms are now considered old-fashioned and even insulting, so we no longer refer to a bachelorette, or female version of a bachelor, or usherette, a female usher in a theater. Yet if we can imagine a small woman artist holding a palette, we may recall the original meanings of the word ending ette. Here are some other words ending with the letters ette:

anisette

audiocassette

baguette

brunette

croquette

dinette

diskette

etiquette

featurette

gazette

kitchenette

launderette

lorgnette

luncheonette

maisonette

navette

novelette

omelette

roulette

sermonette

silhouette

statuette

suffragette

vignette

vinaigrette

If we associate the words cited above with the noun palette, it is more probable that we will spell all of them correctly.

(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons).