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as in useful
capable of or suitable for being used for a particular purpose that flimsy little saw is not a very practicable tool for cutting heavy tree branches

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective practicable differ from other similar words?

The words feasible and possible are common synonyms of practicable. While all three words mean "capable of being realized," practicable implies that something may be effected by available means or under current conditions.

a solution that is not practicable in the time available

When is feasible a more appropriate choice than practicable?

The words feasible and practicable are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, feasible applies to what is likely to work or be useful in attaining the end desired.

commercially feasible for mass production

In what contexts can possible take the place of practicable?

Although the words possible and practicable have much in common, possible implies that a thing may certainly exist or occur given the proper conditions.

a possible route up the west face of the mountain

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 practicable The technology suddenly seemed practicable. Matthew Hutson, The New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2025 Penguin Random House Canada provides the Information in an accessible format or with appropriate Communication Supports, as soon as practicable, upon request. Hazlitt, 4 Jan. 2025 According to new research, the momentary fusion feat required exquisite choreography and extensive preparations, whose high degree of difficulty reveals a long road ahead before anyone dares hope a practicable power source could be at hand. IEEE Spectrum, 6 Feb. 2024 Spanish tax breaks hiked at the beginning of 2023, make the financials practicable. John Hopewell, Variety, 27 Nov. 2024 See All Example Sentences for practicable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for practicable
Adjective
  • The operator lands their FPV by the side of a track or on a rooftop and waits for possible targets, alerted either by a spotter drone or using the drone’s own camera.
    David Hambling, Forbes.com, 2 July 2025
  • Plenty of big names have been connected as possible targets for the Packers.
    Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025
Adjective
  • White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in May that Trump is abiding by all applicable conflict-of-interest laws.
    Kelsey Walsh, ABC News, 1 July 2025
  • Dealing with rage wouldn’t seem the term most applicable to Estévez, who is as amiable and animated as anyone in the Royals’ clubhouse and radiates a room-energizing presence.
    Vahe Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • This is what makes average household income so useful in this analysis of the wealthiest cities in Arkansas.
    Andrew DePietro, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
  • For instance, a folding utility cart with wheels might be the best option for some, while others may find an electric utility cart more useful.
    BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 30 June 2025
Adjective
  • Today’s Canadian nationalism, by contrast, arises from darker and more practical concerns.
    Stephen Marche, The Atlantic, 1 July 2025
  • Sierra Designs recently updated their award-winning Mobile Mummy, a practical and comfortable wearable sleeping bag originally released in 2014.
    Wendy Altschuler, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
Adjective
  • In a time when the suffering and seemingly hopeless prospects of America’s poor are known to all who have eyes to see, the only fig leaf available to hide the obscenity of this bill is the old partisan charge of waste, fraud and abuse.
    Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune, 6 July 2025
  • Set up free credit monitoring if available, keep an eye on your Social Security statement through the SSA website and check your bank statements closely.
    Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2025
Adjective
  • The value here is easy to see; had there been no incentive, those projects might not have been feasible at all.
    Roger Valdez, Forbes.com, 4 July 2025
  • The company says the structures are dangerous and saving them is not feasible.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 3 July 2025
Adjective
  • That’s where the distinction between applied and contextual AI becomes critical.
    ByTheodore Krantz Jr, Forbes.com, 25 June 2025
  • At the time, most basic and applied research was done by the military.
    Paul Bierman, The Conversation, 15 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Practicable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/practicable. Accessed 9 Jul. 2025.

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