Must... not... lick... Macbook.

July 25, 2006 12:21 PM

What word am I thinking of? There's a word that means something like, "an object that compels you to want to eat or lick it, even though the object is in fact not edible or meant to be licked". If it helps at all, I believe I've seen this word used to describe the new Macbook and its resemblance to an oversized piece of Chiclet gum. And btw, "pica" is not the word.
posted by satori101 to Writing & Language (37 answers total)

Another vote for "lickable." I've even seen Apple called "world's most lickable computer company"
posted by CrunchyFrog at 12:35 PM on July 25, 2006

Pica.
posted by Framer at 12:41 PM on July 25, 2006

Crap. Nevermind........
posted by Framer at 12:42 PM on July 25, 2006

I've only seen 'scrumptious' used like this; perhaps also, obsolescently, 'toothsome' paralleling 'handsome.'
posted by jamjam at 12:52 PM on July 25, 2006

This is now driving me crazy because I think there must be a good word for this. I would normally refer to inedible objects that look tasty as "scrumptious" or "scarfable". But I doubt those are the words you are thinking of.
posted by tastybrains at 12:57 PM on July 25, 2006

delectable?
posted by visual mechanic at 1:02 PM on July 25, 2006

I will fight anyone who says "toothsome" is obsolete.

I'm kidding jamjam . . . well kinda.
posted by annaramma at 1:03 PM on July 25, 2006

I use 'delicious' in this sense a lot...
posted by blind.wombat at 1:03 PM on July 25, 2006

savory?
posted by vacapinta at 1:04 PM on July 25, 2006

I have seen "yummy", luscious and tasty all used in this sense too. (I know that all 4 of mine don't mean "but not actually edible.")
posted by visual mechanic at 1:06 PM on July 25, 2006

Appetizing?
posted by Gyan at 1:08 PM on July 25, 2006

Tempting? Tantalizing? Edible? Tantalizingly edible?
posted by necessitas at 1:18 PM on July 25, 2006

Bubbleliscious?
posted by Xurando at 1:21 PM on July 25, 2006

Sacrilicious? Inediblicious? (Wandering deep into portmanteau neologism territory here, but then I like saying things like "cleverfunny!" and "sadfunny!".
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 1:27 PM on July 25, 2006

There's the expression "I could just eat you with a spoon." It's usually used to suggest that a person is visually appealing. I suppose it could just as easily be "I could just eat it with a spoon." and be used in reference to an object such as a laptop... but for some reason that just sounds wrong to me.
posted by Clay201 at 1:28 PM on July 25, 2006

Indolicious? Delicktable? Insubordilicious?
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 1:29 PM on July 25, 2006

Dangit.


There's the expression "I could just eat you with a spoon." It's usually used to suggest that a person is visually appealing. I suppose it could just as easily be "I could just eat it with a spoon." and be used in reference to an object such as a laptop... but for some reason that just sounds wrong to me.
posted by Clay201 at 1:29 PM on July 25, 2006

Picalicious?
Attractive nuisance?
Irresistable hazard?
Choke-a-choco-licious?


I ususally use 'juicy'.
posted by Extopalopaketle at 1:40 PM on July 25, 2006

I often feel this way about paint. Certain colors just make me wanna taste 'em.

If I had to pick a word for that, I'd go for lickable.
posted by clh at 1:41 PM on July 25, 2006

Everyone know's it's cromulent.
posted by ORthey at 1:43 PM on July 25, 2006

knows, also.
posted by ORthey at 1:43 PM on July 25, 2006

I'm pretty sure it's just "Lickable"
posted by Señor Pantalones at 1:56 PM on July 25, 2006

Seconding luscious or sacrilicious, adding mouthwatering and enticing.
posted by sarahnade at 2:00 PM on July 25, 2006

chompy.
posted by j at 2:07 PM on July 25, 2006

I'd almost second "delectable", but outside of food, I think it's usually used in reference not to an object but to a person, in other words, a sex object. (Examples)
posted by beagle at 2:13 PM on July 25, 2006

You seem pretty confident that there is such a word, but I'm not so sure. There doesn't have to be a word for everything, sometimes a phrase, or the context of a word use, are just fine for conveying an idea.

I could be wrong, I certainly don't have the worlds largest vocabulary. I just thought I'd give you an alternate perspective.
posted by oddman at 2:28 PM on July 25, 2006

Seems like the possibilities are falling into three categories here:
- the tasty: delicious, scrumptious, succulent, al dente
- the oral: lickable, mouthbound, linguitropic
- the irresistible: enticing, hypergravitational, blackholesque

Trying the combine all three, the best I can come up with is fetishistic.
posted by rob511 at 2:50 PM on July 25, 2006

It induces an oral fixation. Yeah, I've got no idea but I can identify with the Mac-licking desire.
posted by BaxterG4 at 2:52 PM on July 25, 2006

Steve Jobs used the word "lickable" to describe the OSX Aqua interface.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 2:54 PM on July 25, 2006

Trying the combine all three, the best I can come up with is fetishistic.

I like that. Like a commodity fetish in the Marxist sense. We referred to ipods that way in an English class I took while discussing Marx. It doesn't convey the precise meaning that the OP is asking for, but I'm not sure there's a word for that.
posted by ludwig_van at 5:15 PM on July 25, 2006

I really like j's suggestion of "chompy".
posted by tastybrains at 7:00 PM on July 25, 2006

whatever this is, it would be useful very often.
posted by eustatic at 7:20 PM on July 25, 2006

I'm going to start saying "chompy" all the time.
posted by joegester at 7:23 PM on July 25, 2006

cunnilingual?
posted by tellurian at 7:52 PM on July 25, 2006

I *do* have the world's largest vocabulary, and I don't know of any other specific word than lickable.

Tasty thread, though...
posted by baylink at 8:32 PM on July 25, 2006

Scratch and sniff?
posted by Margalo Epps at 10:43 AM on July 26, 2006

palatable?
posted by |n$eCur3 at 11:33 PM on July 27, 2006