dispensable

American  

[dih-spen-suh-buhl] / dɪˈspɛn sə bəl /

adjective

1. capable of being dispensed with or done without; not necessary or essential.

   Synonyms:

   extraneous, unimportant, unessential, unnecessary, expendable

2. capable of being dispensed or administered.

   The money is not dispensable at present.

3. Roman Catholic Church. capable of being permitted or forgiven, as an offense or sin.

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dispensable British  

/ dɪˈspɛnsəbəl /

adjective

1. not essential; expendable

2. capable of being distributed

3. (of a law, vow, etc) able to be relaxed

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Other Word Forms

• dispensability noun
• dispensableness noun
• nondispensable adjective
• undispensable adjective

Etymology

Origin of dispensable

1525–35; < Medieval Latin dispēnsābilis, equivalent to Latin dispēns ( āre ) to distribute by weight ( dispense ) + -ābilis -able

Example Sentences

His approach is straightforward: center the writing without pretending the life is dispensable.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

“China-U.S. cooperation is no longer a dispensable option for the two countries or even for the world, but a must-answer question that must be seriously addressed,” he said.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 5, 2024

In his remarks, Francis also repeated his opposition to euthanasia, which he has long decried as a symptom of a “throwaway culture” which treats the elderly and infirm as dispensable.

From Washington Times • Sep. 23, 2023

The wrestlers, too, admit they feel "rather dispensable", but say that they will continue protesting until their demands are met even if their careers suffer.

From BBC • May 22, 2023

Everything else—the piles of dirty laundry, the opened Doritos bags, the empty cans of generic soda pop, two ratty old chairs, and a moldering beanbag chair—was dispensable, an afterthought, props.

From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz