personable
Americanadjective
-
having an agreeable or pleasing personality; affable; amiable; sociable.
-
of pleasing personal appearance; handsome or comely; attractive.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of personable
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at person, -able
Explanation
If you're personable, you're friendly and get along well with other people. Being personable is part of what makes you the star of the sales team — people just seem to like you. Someone who's personable can be outgoing, charming, nice, bubbly, amiable, pleasing, or generous, but he doesn’t have to be all of those things — it just all needs to add up to being pleasant. You may be pleasant but not bubbly, and that’s personable. In fact, if you're too bubbly, you might stop being personable and become annoying, which is not personable.
Vocabulary lists containing personable
Real Nice!
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My Side of the Mountain
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Unit 2, Whole-Class & Small-Group Learning
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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.
Throughout his record number of guest introductions, the president was empathetic and personable.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026
Frank's dismissal will be a bitter disappointment for the popular, personable Dane, who earned his big opportunity at Spurs by taking Brentford into the Premier League and keeping them there for four seasons.
From BBC • Feb. 11, 2026
It works for her because it makes her very personable and makes her music all that more enjoyable because we feel like we’re actually experiencing her as a human being.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 17, 2025
One source in the report called Patel “very personable and likable,” but blamed him for creating “a culture of mistrust and uncertainty among the ranks.”
From Salon • Dec. 1, 2025
Soon patrolmen under the command of Captain Horace Elliott began making regular walks past the store, where in accord with custom they stopped to chat with the young and personable owner.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
