glanceable

American  

[glan-suh-buhl, glahn‐] / ˈglæn sə bəl, ˈglɑn‐ /

adjective

Digital Technology.

1. noting or relating to information on an electronic screen that can be understood quickly or at a glance.

   glanceable data;

   a glanceable scoreboard.

2. enabling information on a screen to be quickly understood.

   a glanceable design;

   glanceable interfaces.

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Other Word Forms

• glanceability
  noun

Etymology

Origin of glanceable

First recorded in 1950–55 for an earlier sense “deserving of a glance”; glance ¹ + -able

Explanation

Use the adjective glanceable to describe something that can be understood instantly, with a quick look. Road signs are designed to be glanceable, so drivers don't waste time wondering whether they're supposed to come to a full stop. Glanceable is very much a 21st-century word that's mostly used for describing images or information on an electronic screen. Mobile phone apps are constantly evolving to be more glanceable — so that users can read text at a single glance, or almost instantly understand map directions. Anything that can be used this way, from the scoreboard at the football stadium to the weather forecast on your fancy electronic watch, is glanceable.

Example Sentences

Before watchOS 9, I’d never use a watchface like Kaleidoscope because I prefer glanceable data to aesthetically pleasing designs.

From The Verge • Jul. 11, 2022

Owning an Apple Watch makes using your iPhone better, giving you additional health tracking metrics and better access to notifications, glanceable information, and things like music control on your wrist.

From The Verge • Oct. 20, 2021

The power of TweetDeck is that it’s glanceable, a way to passively tap into a firehose of personal interests.

From The Verge • Jul. 22, 2021

“We want something that’s very glanceable, that can be seen and done quickly.”

From New York Times • Feb. 22, 2015

From the moment I saw renderings of Android Wear on actual wrists all I could thank is that what makes the information glanceable to the user also makes it telegraphable to everyone else.

From Forbes • Jul. 11, 2014