answerability 1 of 2

as in accountability
willingness or obligation to explain one's actions or to admit being the cause of a problem Without any answerability to the people, the despot's actions were motivated by a desire for personal enrichment.

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1
as in responsible
being the one who must meet an obligation or suffer the consequences for failing to do so you are answerable for your own conduct at all times

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective answerable contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of answerable are accountable, amenable, liable, and responsible. While all these words mean "subject to being held to account," answerable suggests a relation between one having a moral or legal obligation and a court or other authority charged with oversight of its observance.

an intelligence agency answerable to Congress

Where would accountable be a reasonable alternative to answerable?

The synonyms accountable and answerable are sometimes interchangeable, but accountable suggests imminence of retribution for unfulfilled trust or violated obligation.

elected officials are accountable to the voters

How do amenable and liable relate to one another, in the sense of answerable?

Both amenable and liable stress the fact of subjection to review, censure, or control by a designated authority under certain conditions.

laws are amenable to judicial review
not liable for the debts of the former spouse

When can responsible be used instead of answerable?

The meanings of responsible and answerable largely overlap; however, responsible implies holding a specific office, duty, or trust.

the bureau responsible for revenue collection

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of answerability
Adjective
These special prosecutors could investigate and charge high-ranking executive officials but were not answerable to the president. Anastasia Boden, National Review, 4 July 2025 OpenAI is currently completely controlled by its nonprofit board, which is purely answerable to the company’s founding mission: ensuring that AI benefits all of humanity. Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 20 June 2025 Issue The View from Here Will Trump use an obscure legal loophole to turn the National Guard into an anti-immigrant army answerable only to him? Air Mail, 14 June 2025 Like every member of the General Assembly, Stewart essentially is an independent contractor answerable to the voters, not an employee who can be fired or have their pay docked by the House leadership. Mark Pazniokas, Hartford Courant, 17 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for answerability
Recent Examples of Synonyms for answerability
Noun
  • Trusted advisors, coaches, and confidantes offer accountability and perspective, thereby mitigating the potential for blind spots to become liabilities.
    Julian Hayes II, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • In recent years, critics and supporters have vigorously debated its response to post-pandemic inflation … Independence isn’t a permanent entitlement; it must be earned and maintained through transparency, accountability and performance.
    Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • These are all features developed by the building’s original creators, the Miami firm of Steward-Skinner and Associates, prominent architects of the time also responsible for the design of the Miami Seaquarium and MIA’s first jet-age terminal.
    Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald, 6 Sep. 2025
  • Just because data is used does not mean that reliable, responsible insight is necessarily being delivered.
    Mark Carey, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The responsibility of creating executive departments also rests with Congress.
    Ingrid Vasquez, PEOPLE, 5 Sep. 2025
  • It is based solely on my responsibility to protect the people of my state and to advocate for the public health of the entire country.
    CNN Money, CNN Money, 4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The claim names Milwaukee County, the county's Circuit Court, and the Sheriff's Office as being liable for injuries and damages.
    Vanessa Swales, jsonline.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • However, the jury found Google liable for two of three privacy violation claims.
    PC Magazine, PC Magazine, 5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • When feasible, maintain a sense of humor and perspective.
    Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
  • But Skarin said that isn’t feasible because the animals eat on the move and the relocation would deny them food to be grazed while walking from one area to another.
    Jason Ma, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Clearly communicate when customers are interacting with AI, and use explainable AI frameworks so users can understand the reasoning behind decisions.
    Leonard Martin Schmedding, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
  • Key trends include advancements in LLMs powering sophisticated chatbots, the rise of autonomous AI for workflow automation, and the democratization of AI through no-code/low-code platforms, all underpinned by critical ethical and explainable AI frameworks.
    Wyles Daniel, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • The spicules themselves begin dissolving right away and are fully broken down into harmless, water-soluble components within 24 hours.
    Celia Shatzman, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
  • In addition to protein and fiber, oat bread contains beta-glucan, a soluble fiber naturally found in oats, barley, and rye.
    Lindsey DeSoto, Verywell Health, 2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Jason Ritter plays Julian’s scenes in this episode with raw emotion, making the character’s choices more explicable, if not entirely forgivable.
    Noel Murray, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025
  • An extraordinary and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws, and is therefore attributed to a divine agency?
    Tim Spiers, New York Times, 14 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Answerability.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/answerability. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

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