negotiable
Americanadjective
-
capable of being negotiated.
a negotiable salary demand.
-
(of bills, securities, etc.) transferable by delivery, with or without endorsement, according to the circumstances, the title passing to the transferee.
noun
adjective
-
able to be negotiated
-
(of a bill of exchange, promissory note, etc) legally transferable in title from one party to another
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of negotiable
First recorded in 1750–60; negoti(ate) + -able
Explanation
If you're told that a price is negotiable, that means you can talk it over until you reach an agreement. So don't start with your highest offer. Negotiable can also mean that a road or path can be used. Since the avalanche, you've found that many of the local roads are no longer negotiable. If you can pass on a possession to someone else, making them the owner, then it's said to be negotiable. The "t" in negotiable is pronounced "sh."
Vocabulary lists containing negotiable
Power Suffix: -able
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "N"
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Personal Finance and Financial Literacy - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"There are powerful interests desperate to protect their wealth and influence," said Fiji's head of delegation Sivendra Michael, flanked by supporters in T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Science is Not Negotiable".
From Barron's • Jun. 17, 2026
Rabin Says Golan Negotiable Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin told kibbutz leaders that he was willing to negotiate the issue of the Golan Heights with Syria.
From Time Magazine Archive
Negotiable Paper.—By negotiable paper is meant paper that can be sold and transferred.
From Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman by Bolles, Albert Sidney
Negotiable, ne-gō′shi-a-bl, adj. that may be transacted: that can be transferred to another with the same rights as belonged to the original holder, as a bill of exchange.—n.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) by Various
The Negotiable Instruments Act fixes the liability of a person who is not a party to a note, and who indorses it before delivery.
From Putnam's Handy Law Book for the Layman by Bolles, Albert Sidney
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
