legible

adjective

leg·​i·​ble ˈle-jə-bəl How to pronounce legible (audio)
1
: capable of being read or deciphered : plain
legible handwriting
2
: capable of being discovered or understood
murder sweltered in his heart and was legible upon his faceThomas Wolfe
legibility noun
legibly adverb

Examples of legible in a Sentence

The document is not legible. an anxious mood that was clearly legible upon her face
Recent Examples on the Web The film makes the historical continuity of unchecked police power legible—examining who’s policed, who’s protected and why. Leo Barraclough, Variety, 12 Mar. 2024 Condensing a story of that length, set in 1600s Japan, into 10 hours that will be legible to American audiences? Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 27 Feb. 2024 The black rubber turns out to be swaths of the fuel bladder, its white stenciled serial numbers still bright and legible. Carolyn Wells, Longreads, 22 Feb. 2024 Attentive staff, comfy seating, a broad but legible selection of new and classic Francophone literature (in both French and English), and much Proustiana, in a hushed jewel-box-like space. The New Yorker, 17 Feb. 2024 Sample images taken after the update appear radically improved—sharper and clearer than before and with more legible text. Paul Monckton, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024 The rules are so tiny as to appear like pin dots, but are legible under the lens of a microscope. Cynthia Billhartz Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 1 Feb. 2024 Signage in Khmer, English, Chinese and Korean becomes as legible as my abilities allow as my motorbike comes to a halt. Ron Lieber, New York Times, 16 Dec. 2023 This is a hyper-communicative group that prioritizes clarity, as if to make their expert gestures as legible as possible to one another. Chris Richards, Washington Post, 14 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'legible.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Late Latin legibilis, from Latin legere to read

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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

Dictionary Entries Near legible

Cite this Entry

“Legible.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legible. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

legible

adjective
leg·​i·​ble ˈlej-ə-bəl How to pronounce legible (audio)
: capable of being read : plain
legible handwriting
legibility noun
legibly adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on legible

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