legible

adjective

leg·​i·​ble ˈle-jə-bəl 

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 face

—Thomas Wolfe

legibility

ˌle-jə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

legibly

ˈle-jə-blē 

adverb

Synonyms

• understandable
• accessible

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 Babycatcher took the writing implements and, holding the pen like a farmer holds his fork, scratched down barely legible numbers. —Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2025

Notably, the user interface features a cleaner and more legible menu system compared with the game's previous releases. —PC Magazine, 13 Oct. 2025

The ink is barely dry on Filip Gustavsson’s extension, but even though his signature is legible and that $34 million over five years starting next season is guaranteed and legally binding, Gustavsson still had butterflies heading into Thursday’s opener. —Michael Russo, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025

The result was to make insider thinking legible to a much broader audience at a fever-pitch moment in the AI conversation. —Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 8 Oct. 2025

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

Rhymes for legible

• illegible

Kids Definition

legible

adjective

leg·​i·​ble ˈlej-ə-bəl 

: capable of being read : plain

legible handwriting

legibility

ˌlej-ə-ˈbil-ət-ē 

noun

legibly

ˈlej-ə-blē 

adverb