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acceptable

[ak-sep-tuh-buh l]
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adjective
  1. capable or worthy of being accepted.
  2. pleasing to the receiver; satisfactory; agreeable; welcome.
  3. meeting only minimum requirements; barely adequate: an acceptable performance.
  4. capable of being endured; tolerable; bearable: acceptable levels of radiation.

Origin of acceptable

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Late Latin word acceptābilis. See accept, -able
Related formsac·cept·a·bil·i·ty, ac·cept·a·ble·ness, nounac·cept·a·bly, adverbun·ac·cept·a·bil·i·ty, nounun·ac·cept·a·ble, adjectiveun·ac·cept·a·ble·ness, nounun·ac·cept·a·bly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for acceptably

Historical Examples

  • Let that, however, be as God wills, and be spoken of acceptably to him.

    Phaedrus

    Plato

  • Whatever it was, it was, acceptably, relatively close to this earth.

  • I know of no aerolite that has ever been acceptably traced to terrestrial origin.

  • Earl, our cause is just and we must learn to plead it acceptably.

    The Hindered Hand

    Sutton E. Griggs

  • He had formerly served the country most acceptably at the French court.

British Dictionary definitions for acceptably

acceptable

adjective
  1. satisfactory; adequate
  2. pleasing; welcome
  3. tolerable
Derived Formsacceptability or acceptableness, nounacceptably, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for acceptably

acceptable

adj.

late 14c., from Old French acceptable, from Latin acceptabilis "worthy of acceptance," from acceptare (see accept). Related: Acceptably.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper