plausibility

noun plau·si·bil·i·ty \ ˌplȯ-zə-ˈbi-lə-tē \

|Updated on: 22 Jun 2018

Definition of plausibility

plural plausibilities

1 : the quality or state of being plausible

2 : something plausible

Recent Examples of plausibility from the Web

Now plausibility has turned into reality, thanks to new technology coming out of MIT.

— liz stinson, Curbed, "MIT just invented X-ray vision—sort of," 15 June 2018
That many of them settled in the Muslim-majority state of Jammu and Kashmir adds a patina of plausibility to this conspiratorial take.

— sadanand dhume, WSJ, "Fear of Islam Leads India to Snub Refugees," 31 May 2018
Nations made charges and countercharges, claiming to have damning but secret evidence about each other’s conduct, with Russia in particular spinning an array of theories of varying degrees of plausibility.

— richard pÉrez-peÑa and rick gladstone, New York Times, "Chemical Arms Experts Blocked From Site of Syria Attack," 16 Apr. 2018
Audiences today still crave fantastical adventures but at the same time demand a greater degree of plausibility.

— larry greenemeier, Scientific American, "Marvel Comics Gets Inside the Heads of the Avengers," 21 Aug. 2014
Today, the impeachment of Donald Trump exists on the brink of plausibility.

— jeffrey toobin, The New Yorker, "Will the Fervor for Impeachment Start a Democratic Civil War?," 19 May 2018
Paragon missed even that window of plausibility by at least two years.

— steven strom, Ars Technica, "How Epic’s Fortnite rose from the ashes of Paragon’s failure," 11 May 2018
There is biological plausibility that cannabis could cause changes in the brain that is still developing.

— alice park, Time, "How Smoking Pot May Hurt the Teenage Brain," 18 Apr. 2018
But the contact via mail piqued my interest: Despite how absurd and badly composed the letter was, the accompanying stamps and logos gave it an air of officialdom, of plausibility.

— simon r. gardner, The Atlantic, "98 Years of Mail Fraud," 4 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'plausibility.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.