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 of legible

• 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

Nowhere is that dynamic more legible than in the figure of podcaster Theo Von. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2026

Those options — less glamorous, less politically legible, but fiscally coherent — have been quietly sidelined. —James Porter, Mercury News, 17 Apr. 2026

Can an art museum tell a non-linear version of art history and still be legible to its visitors? —Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 17 Apr. 2026

In that sense, video games have created a more legible relationship between types of physical media than most Hollywood creatives can crack. —Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 16 Apr. 2026

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