readable

1 of 2

adjective

read·​able ˈrē-də-bəl 

: able to be read easily: such as

a

: legible

b

: interesting to read

a highly readable novel

readability

ˌrē-də-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

readableness

ˈrē-də-bəl-nəs 

noun

readably

ˈrē-də-blē 

adverb

readability

2 of 2

noun

read·​abil·​i·​ty ˌrē-də-ˈbi-lə-tē 

: the quality or state of being readable

traces our history with skill and readability

—R. L. Duffus

the physical readability of the book is poor because of its heavy, close typography

—Robert Halsband

testing the readability of prose by measuring the length of sentences

—F. L. Mott

improvement in the readability of newspaper writing

—Bruce Westley

Examples of readable in a Sentence

Adjective

The travel guide is very readable.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

EPaper is a display technology—best known from the E Ink brand commercialized by E Ink Corporation and widely used in ereaders—that supports ultra-high pixel densities, reflects ambient light, remains readable in bright sunlight, and greatly conserves battery life. —Tony Hoffman, PC Magazine, 3 June 2026

Perhaps best known for her sprawling and compulsively readable biography of globetrotting ur naturalist Alexander von Humboldt, Wulf now turns her attention to the life and times of another intellectual phenomenon, George Forster. —Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 June 2026

Safety also requires readable, reliable responses. —Benjamin Laker, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026

Georgia's touch-screen voting machines print a paper ballot that includes a human-readable list of voters' selections and a QR code that a scanner reads to count votes. —CBS News, 17 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing readable

• machine-readable

Rhymes for readable

• unreadable

Kids Definition

readable

adjective

read·​able ˈrēd-ə-bəl 

: able to be read easily

readability

ˌrēd-ə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun

readably

-blē 

adverb