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Showing results for passably. Search instead for passibly.
Synonyms

passably

American  
[pas-uh-blee, pah-suh-] / ˈpæs ə bli, ˈpɑ sə- /

adverb

  1. fairly; moderately.

    a passably good novel.


passably British  
/ ˈpɑːsəblɪ /

adverb

  1. fairly; somewhat

  2. acceptably; well enough

    she sings passably

"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

Etymology

Origin of passably

First recorded in 1600–10; passable + -ly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

It doesn’t solve everything, but mutual assured destruction worked passably well for 70 years to hold off nuclear Armageddon.

From The Wall Street Journal May 19, 2026

Kelly has done an even starker about-face on one of her favorite topics these days: trans issues, on which she used to be passably sympathetic.

From Slate May 6, 2026

Rachvelishvili thought the first performance went passably, but the company’s administration disagreed.

From New York Times Dec. 20, 2023

For about three quarters of the year, I make do with merely passably flavorful frozen berries that I deploy to chuck into smoothies and brighten up my oatmeal.

From Salon Jun. 4, 2023

I get out of the bathroom as soon as my teeth are passably clean.

From "Sparrow" by Sarah Moon

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