eligibility

noun

el·​i·​gi·​bil·​i·​ty ˌe-lə-jə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

: the quality or state of being eligible : fitness or suitability to be chosen, selected, or allowed to do something

The applicants must meet all requirements for eligibility.

… should "Shoeless Joe" Jackson, of "Black Sox" infamy, also be granted eligibility for the Hall of Fame?

—David A. Kaplan

Mass mailings go out to low-income areas, and if a letter is returned as undeliverable, the party uses it to challenge that voter's eligibility.

—Sasha Abramsky

Examples of eligibility in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Minimum eligibility includes a public account, three posts, and roughly 1,000 followers. —Charlie Fink, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026

Hensley has one year of college eligibility remaining. —John Maffei, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026

While some categories have specific eligibility requirements, all films need to meet a baseline set of criteria to be considered. —Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026

At that time, NCAA commissioner Charlie Baker said the line would be drawn where any player who had signed an NBA contract, including a two-way contract that assigned the player to the developmental G League, would not be granted eligibility. —Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1651, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing eligibility

• re-eligibility

Rhymes for eligibility

• acceptability
• accessibility
• adaptability
• admissibility
• advisability
• affordability
• allowability
• amenability
• amiability
• appealability
• applicability
• availability