intangible

[in-tan-juh-buhl]

adjective

not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable.
not definite or clear to the mind: intangible arguments.
(of an asset) existing only in connection with something else, as the goodwill of a business.

noun

something intangible, especially an intangible asset: Intangibles are hard to value.

Origin of intangible

From the Medieval Latin word intangibilis, dating back to 1630–40. See in-³, tangible

Related formsin·tan·gi·bil·i·ty, in·tan·gi·ble·ness, nounin·tan·gi·bly, adverb

Synonyms for intangible

2. vague, elusive, fleeting.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for intangibility

Historical Examples of intangibility

The intangibility of the quarrel was what made it hardest to bear.
Much Ado About Peter
Jean Webster
The utter silence of the morning was ethereal in its intangibility.
The Law of the North (Originally published as Empery)
Samuel Alexander White
But the intangibility of wealth can be shown in yet another fashion.
The Great Illusion
Norman Angell
It was the very subtlety and intangibility of "they" that made him uneasy, made him less sure of himself and his own ability.
Still Jim
Honor Willsie Morrow
Mr. James is at his best in exhibiting at once the intensity of her disgust and the intangibility of its provocation.
The Oxford Book of American Essays
Various

British Dictionary definitions for intangibility

intangible

adjective

incapable of being perceived by touch; impalpable
imprecise or unclear to the mindintangible ideas
(of property or a business asset) saleable though not possessing intrinsic productive value

noun

something that is intangible

Derived Formsintangibility or intangibleness, nounintangibly, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for intangibility

intangible

adj.

1630s, "incapable of being touched," from French intangible (c.1500) or directly from Medieval Latin intangibilis, from in- "not" (see in- (1)) + Late Latin tangibilis "that may be touched" (see tangible). Figurative sense of "that cannot be grasped by the mind" is from 1880. Noun meaning "anything intangible" is from 1914. Related: Intangibly.