bailable

American  

[bey-luh-buhl] / ˈbeɪ lə bəl /

adjective

Law.

1. capable of being set free on bail.

2. admitting of bail.

   a bailable offense.

---

bailable British  

/ ˈbeɪləbəl /

adjective

1. eligible for release on bail

2. admitting of bail

   a bailable offence

---

Other Word Forms

• nonbailable adjective
• unbailable adjective

Etymology

Origin of bailable

First recorded in 1495–1505; bail ¹ + -able

Example Sentences

In court on Wednesday, presiding judge Emeka Nwite stated that the charges against the defendants were bailable offences.

From BBC • Jan. 7, 2026

The ruling overturns a Kankakee County judge’s opinion in December that the law violated the constitution’s provision that “all persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties.”

From Seattle Times • Jul. 18, 2023

Mr Kappan's lawyer told the BBC in 2021 that his client was initially charged with "minor bailable offences".

From BBC • Feb. 2, 2023

But when he ignored that date too, the Supreme Court issued a "bailable warrant" against him, ordering the West Bengal state police chief to bring him in on 31 March.

From BBC • May 2, 2017

And even these very judges of Elizabeth, who thus protect the people against the tyranny of the great, expressly allow, that a person committed by special command of the queen is not bailable.

From The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.I., Part D. From Elizabeth to James I. by Hume, David