mobility

American  

[moh-bil-i-tee] / moʊˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

mobilities plural

1. the quality of being mobile.

2. Sociology. social mobility.

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mobility British  

/ məʊˈbɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. the ability to move physically

   a knee operation has restricted his mobility

   mobility is part of physical education

2. sociol (of individuals or social groups) movement within or between classes and occupations See also vertical mobility horizontal mobility

3. time that a resident of a secure unit is allowed to spend outside the unit, as preparation for an eventual return to society

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• intermobility
  noun
• nonmobility
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• mobilities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of mobility

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English mobilite, from Latin mōbilitās. See mobile, -ity

Compare meaning

How does mobility compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• motility vs. mobility

Explanation

Mobility is the ability to move freely. If your basketball injury causes you to lose mobility in your knee, that means you can’t move it very well. Mobility often refers to whether you can move an injured body part, like a joint or a limb, but it can also describe movement in general. If you have great mobility on the tennis court, that means you move freely and easily, running down shots with ease. Mobility can also describe movement between different social or economic levels. Your fancy new job may offer opportunities for upward mobility.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mobility mobilities

Micromobility vehicles - which include, e-scooters, e-bikes, mobility scooters and now e-unicyles too - have become a concern for people navigating town and city centres.

From BBC ● Jul. 7, 2026

If we take into account the very strong tendency towards female mobility, a paradox appears, one that places the extrapolation proposed by the Science article under deep tension.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026

One of the industry's arguments is that autonomous vehicles could improve mobility for people who cannot easily drive themselves.

From BBC ● Jul. 6, 2026

But Shim In-wook, a professor of smart mobility engineering at Inha University, believes robot football will ultimately become a sport in its own right.

From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026

Hampton’s student body ranged from youngsters taking their family’s first step onto the ladder of social mobility to the scions of the Talented Tenth.

From "Hidden Figures" by Margot Lee Shetterly

Key findings reveal a consensus among the professionals about the inevitability of various forms of climate mobilities in South Florida.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 2, 2024

Climate mobilities, while presenting benefits, also pose significant challenges.

From Science Daily ● Jan. 2, 2024

"We are in talks about the 11 countries where we are present ... it is up to Nissan to decide," Nicolas Schottey said at the Autonomy Mobility conference about new mobilities in Paris.

From Reuters ● Mar. 23, 2023

My first time at the Voice, in 1966, was a fluke typical of the overnight mobilities of life and work in New York then.

From The New Yorker ● Sep. 2, 2018

He has studied in a very ingenious manner, not only the mobilities, but also the law of recombination which regulates the spontaneous return of the gas to its normal state.

From The New Physics and Its Evolution by Poincaré, Lucien

Related Words

• flexibility
• maneuverability