variable

[ vair-ee-uh-buhl ]

/ ˈvɛər i ə bəl /

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See synonyms for: variable / variability / variably on Thesaurus.com

adjective

apt or liable to vary or change; changeable: variable weather;variable moods.

capable of being varied or changed; alterable: a variable time limit for completion of a book.

inconstant; fickle: a variable lover.

having much variation or diversity.

Biology. deviating from the usual type, as a species or a specific character.

Astronomy. (of a star) changing in brightness.

Meteorology. (of wind) tending to change in direction.

Mathematics. having the nature or characteristics of a variable.

noun

something that may or does vary or change; a variable feature or factor.

Mathematics, Computers.

a quantity or function that may assume any given value or set of values.
a symbol that represents this.

Logic. (in the functional calculus) a symbol for an unspecified member of a class of things or statements.Compare bound variable, free variable.

Astronomy. variable star.

Meteorology.

a shifting wind, especially as distinguished from a trade wind.
variables, doldrums (def. 2a).

OTHER WORDS FOR variable

3 vacillating, wavering, fluctuating, unsteady, mercurial.

See synonyms for variable on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR variable

1, 3 constant.

See antonyms for variable on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of variable

First recorded in 1350–1400; late Middle English, from Latin variābilis, equivalent to vari(us) “speckled, variegate, diverse” + -ābilis adjective suffix; see various, -able

OTHER WORDS FROM variable

var·i·a·bil·i·ty

[vair-ee-uh-bil-i-tee], /ˌvɛər i əˈbɪl ɪ ti/, var·i·a·ble·ness, nounvar·i·a·bly, adverbhy·per·var·i·a·ble, adjectivehy·per·var·i·a·bly, adverb

non·var·i·a·ble, adjectivenon·var·i·a·ble·ness, nounnon·var·i·a·bly, adverbun·var·i·a·ble, adjectiveun·var·i·a·ble·ness, nounun·var·i·a·bly, adverb

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH variable

variable , variant

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use variable in a sentence

Overall, the researchers did not find a connection between the decrease in average body temperature and any individual variable or combination of variables.
Bolivia’s Tsimane people’s average body temperature fell half a degree in 16 years|Sujata Gupta|November 13, 2020|Science News
This is especially problematic for neuroscience, where the variables—an animal’s neurons and the environment outside its brain—number in the billions.
Are We Wired to Be Outside? - Issue 92: Frontiers|Grigori Guitchounts|November 11, 2020|Nautilus
The pandemic is, of course, the first variable that comes to mind.
There’s no such thing as home-field advantage in the NFL this season|Neil Greenberg|November 11, 2020|Washington Post
These maps, Jain said, entail something akin to a polynomial calculating machine connected to a system of secret lockers containing the values of the variables.
Computer Scientists Achieve ‘Crown Jewel’ of Cryptography|Erica Klarreich|November 10, 2020|Quanta Magazine

Those early calculations of the universe’s expansion, however, had been based on distance measurements relying on Cepheid variable stars.
These are science’s Top 10 erroneous results|Tom Siegfried|November 10, 2020|Science News
The hybrid has a faint dark basicaudal spot that is variably developed in Rhinichthys but absent in Gila.
Five Natural Hybrid Combinations in Minnows (Cyprinidae)|Frank B. Cross
Greek Gods before they were sculptured would be conceived just as variably.
The Evolution of States|J. M. Robertson
His friend treated him very nicely for the most part, if very variably.
The Honorable Peter Stirling and What People Thought of Him|Paul Leicester Ford
The specimens that I have examined from Coahuila are variably intermediate between the subspecies aurifrons and incanescens.
Birds from Coahuila, Mexico|Emil K. Urban
Excess of government variably defeats itself by driving away those to be governed.
Illustrations of Universal Progress|Herbert Spencer

British Dictionary definitions for variable

variable

/ (ˈvɛərɪəbəl) /

adjective

liable to or capable of changevariable weather

(of behaviour, opinions, emotions, etc) lacking constancy; fickle

maths having a range of possible values

(of a species, characteristic, etc) liable to deviate from the established type

(of a wind) varying its direction and intensity

(of an electrical component or device) designed so that a characteristic property, such as resistance, can be variedvariable capacitor

noun

something that is subject to variation

maths

an expression that can be assigned any of a set of values
a symbol, esp x, y, or z, representing an unspecified member of a class of objects, numbers, etcSee also dependent variable, independent variable

logic a symbol, esp x, y, z, representing any member of a class of entities

computing a named unit of storage that can be changed to any of a set of specified values during execution of a program

astronomy See variable star

a variable wind

(plural) a region where variable winds occur

Derived forms of variable

variability or variableness, nounvariably, adverb

Word Origin for variable

C14: from Latin variābilis changeable, from variāre to diversify

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

Scientific definitions for variable

variable

[ vâr′ē-ə-bəl ]

A mathematical quantity capable of assuming any of a set of values, such as x in the expression 3x + 2.

A factor or condition that is subject to change, especially one that is allowed to change in a scientific experiment to test a hypothesis. See more at control.

variable

OTHER WORDS FOR variable

OPPOSITES FOR variable

Origin of variable

OTHER WORDS FROM variable

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH variable

Words related to variable

How to use variable in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for variable

Derived forms of variable

Word Origin for variable

Scientific definitions for variable