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definitions

intelligible

[ in-tel-i-juh-buhl ]
/ ɪnˈtɛl ɪ dʒə bəl /
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adjective

capable of being understood; comprehensible; clear: an intelligible response.
Philosophy. apprehensible by the mind only; conceptual.

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RELATED WORDS

comprehensible, clear, distinct, knowable, lucid, luminous, obvious, open, plain, unambiguous, unequivocal, unmistakable, fathomable, apprehensible, graspable

Nearby words

intelligent knowledge-based system, intelligent terminal, intelligential, intelligentsia, intelligibility, intelligible, intelsat, intemerate, intemperance, intemperate, intend

Origin of intelligible

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin intelligibilis, equivalent to intellig- (see intelligent) + -ibilis -ible
Related forms
Can be confusedintelligent intelligible intellectual (see synonym study at intelligent)
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for intelligible

British Dictionary definitions for intelligible

intelligible

/ (ɪnˈtɛlɪdʒəbəl) /

adjective

able to be understood; comprehensible
philosophy
  1. capable of being apprehended by the mind or intellect alone
  2. (in metaphysical systems such as those of Plato or Kant) denoting that metaphysical realm which is accessible to the intellect as opposed to the world of mere phenomena accessible to the senses
Derived Formsintelligibility or intelligibleness, nounintelligibly, adverb

Word Origin for intelligible

C14: from Latin intellegibilis; see intellect
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 intelligible

intelligible

adj.

late 14c., "able to understand," from Latin intelligibilis, intellegibilis "that can understand, that can be understood," from intellegere "to understand" (see intelligence). In English, sense of "capable of being understood" first recorded c.1600. Related: Intelligibly.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper