portable

American  

[pawr-tuh-buhl, pohr-] / ˈpɔr tə bəl, ˈpoʊr- /

adjective

1. capable of being transported or conveyed.

   a portable stage.

2. easily carried or conveyed by hand.

   I found a lightweight, portable propane stove for our trekking holiday.

3. Computers. (of data sets, software, etc.) capable of being used on different computer systems.

4. Obsolete. endurable.

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noun

• portables
  plural

1. something that is easily carried by hand, especially as distinguished from a counterpart that is harder or less convenient to move.

   Of their three television sets, one is a portable.

portable British  

/ ˈpɔːtəbəl /

adjective

1. able to be carried or moved easily, esp by hand

2. (of software, files, etc) able to be transferred from one type of computer system to another

3. archaic able to be endured; bearable

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noun

1. an article designed to be readily carried by hand, such as a television, typewriter, etc

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• portability
  noun
• nonportable
  adjective
• unportable
  adjective
• portably
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• portables
  plural

Etymology

Origin of portable

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin portābilis; see port ⁵, -able

Explanation

If something's portable, you can easily take it with you . You may carry your portable computer with you from class to class because it's small, light, and fits easily in your backpack. First appearing around 1400, portable stems from the Latin word portare, meaning "to carry." Used as an adjective, portable describes something you can carry around easily. Used as a noun, it means a smaller, easy-to-carry version of something, like a computer or television. On a trip, you might take your portable so you can watch movies in the car. Before computers became popular, you might have carried around a lightweight typewriter called a portable.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

portable portables

The group turned on a portable ring light while Osaka was serving, leading to a reprimand from the umpire.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

She has been called the “human printer” because she follows Trump with a portable printer to provide Trump with hard copies of flattering news coverage or information the computer-averse president requires.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026

SAVANNAH, Ga.—Bill Howard’s family has earned a living from the piney woods of southeast Georgia since 1898, when his great-grandfather and seven great-great uncles started cutting lumber with a portable sawmill.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026

Harp has been dubbed the "human printer" -- thanks to her role carrying a portable machine to print out documents that Trump asks for.

From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026

She let her mind wander on briefly to other things, to a backpack and bedrolls, to a portable stove.

From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt

Built into a refurbished shipping container, it’s filled with everything from tiny Walkman-style portables to colorful, number-flip clock radios and, naturally, boomboxes of all sizes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 20, 2026

Consider Northshore, which has a capital bond measure on the ballot that would raise $425 million, to be used for adding classroom space and alleviating overcrowding that has the district relying on 172 portables.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 26, 2022

Just beware of the comparably low 30-watt limit on this charger, which isn’t sufficient to provide enough juice for more powerful portables like the MacBook Pro.

From The Verge ● Oct. 27, 2021

The only question portables raise for me are logistical.

From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2020

It began to run toward the back portables, like someone had pulled the plug out of a giant bathtub.

From "Tangerine" by Edward Bloor

Related Words

• compact
• convenient
• handy
• lightweight