Benign tumours of the tonsils are rare. Only a few cases of tonsillar lipoma have been previously reported. The case of a pedunculated polypoid lipoma of the palatine tonsil in a 44-year-old Japanese woman is presented. The ‘polyp’ was excised and an histopathological examination was carried out. The ‘polyp’ contained dilated lymphatics in the dense fibrous connective tissue beneath the overlying mucosal epithelium and below the mature fat tissue with intervening strands of fibrous tissue.