pettableadj.
/ˈpɛtəbl/, U.S. /ˈpɛdəb(ə)l/ Originally and chiefly North American.
Suitable for petting; that can be (safely) petted.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > domestic animal > [adjective] > pet > suitable for petting
pettable1859
1859 J. W. De Forest Seacliff xviii. 266 I used to amuse myself with running down a pet bantam rooster... While I held him under my arm, he was as quiet and pettable as a dog.
1874 Atlantic Monthly June 743/2 He is a favorite because of his..glossy fur, and because in his youth he was so affectionate and pettable.
1941 I. Gershwin Unforgettable in Compl. Lyrics (1993) 296/2 You are unforgettable; You're the rainbow shining through. None so sweet and pettable As you.
1978 Chicago June 50/2 In the large Children's Zoo, youngsters can walk into a petting area and be surrounded by pettable domestic animals.
2004 Boston Globe (Nexis) 29 Feb. m1 We descended from the boat..to feed the stingrays. They turned out to be eminently pettable. They're soft and like rubbing up against people.
Derivatives
pettaˈbility n. rare
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > domestic animal > [noun] > pet > being suitable for
pettability1963
1963 F. E. Sparshott Struct. Aesthetics iii. 74 ‘Handsome’..is applied to things whose appearance stirs the imagination—but by suggestions of vigour rather than of pettability.
2002 Re: Wild Life in soc.bi (Usenet newsgroup) 10 Apr. Idiot carnivores who care more about the pettability factor than any real issues of care & feeding & humane slaughter of all edible beasts.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2005; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1859