accessible

American  

[ak-ses-uh-buhl, ik-] / ækˈsɛs ə bəl, ɪk- /

adjective

1. easy to approach, reach, enter, speak with, or use.

2. able to be used, entered, reached, etc..

   an accessible road; accessible Mayan ruins.

3. suitable for disabled people to reach, enter, or use, as a result of design modifications: modified controllers to make video games accessible.

   wheelchair-accessible vans;

   modified controllers to make video games accessible.

4. readily understandable.

   Students may believe that poetry is not accessible because of its metaphorical language.

5. obtainable; attainable.

   accessible evidence.

6. open to the influence of (usually followed byto ).

   accessible to bribery.

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accessible British  

/ əkˈsɛsəbəl /

adjective

1. easy to approach, enter, use, or understand

2. likely to be affected by; open to; susceptible to

3. obtainable; available

4. easy for disabled people to enter or use

5. logic (of a possible world) surveyable from some other world so that the truth value of statements about it can be known. A statement possibly p is true in a world W if and only if p is true in some worlds accessible to W

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Other Word Forms

• accessibility
  noun
• accessibly
  adverb
• nonaccessible
  adjective
• preaccessible
  adjective
• unaccessible
  adjective
• unaccessibly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of accessible

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, Middle French, from Late Latin accessibilis; see origin at access, -ible

Explanation

Accessible can mean easy to get to. If the mall is easily accessible, you might be tempted to spend a lot of money on your lunch breaks. The "within reach" definition of the adjective accessible does not just refer to physical distance. A person can be accessible if they are approachable and friendly. A celebrity that is accessible probably signs a lot of autographs and grants interviews. The word can also describe something that is easily understood. You might need to read a plot summary of a long convoluted novel — to make it more accessible or easy to follow.

Example Sentences

"Given how difficult it is for any piece of culture, let alone books, to get more than fleeting attention, it seems baffling that publishers first offer up the least accessible version."

From BBC • May 24, 2026

Control of Islam’s holiest sites generates prestige and revenue, but it also carries an obligation to keep them safe and accessible for all Muslims.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 23, 2026

They’ll describe how the museum is the first of its kind in Ventura County and how they hope to make it accessible to as many local children as possible through outreach, discounts and free programming.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2026

Single cell profiling also allowed them to track which genes were active, which regions of DNA became accessible, and how those changes evolved.

From Science Daily • May 21, 2026

The societies most accessible to receiving inventions by diffusion were those embedded in the major continents.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond

Related Words

• available
• handy
• reachable
• usable