viability
Americannoun
-
viabilities
plural
-
ability to live, especially under certain conditions.
The viability of a fetus outside the womb has increased dramatically with the advent of new technologies and procedures.
-
the capacity to operate or be sustained.
The viability of the company was guaranteed by the success of its new product.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of viability
First recorded in 1820–30; vi(able) ( def. ) + -ability ( def. )
Explanation
The noun viability means the quality of being able to happen or having a reasonable chance of success. The viability of holding your party at a restaurant might depend on how many guests they can seat. Viability comes from the Latin root vita, meaning "life." So the noun viability also refers to something's capacity to live and grow. When your dog has a litter of puppies, you can't help wondering about the viability of the tiniest one, but if you feed him with an eyedropper and keep him warm, he might make it.
Vocabulary lists containing viability
The Scoop on Net Neutrality
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The Last Lecture
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Vocabulary from the Ninth Republican Debate, February 13, 2016
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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.
"Higher interest rates, rising costs of construction and other issues are impacting the viability and delivery of new housing and big redevelopment projects," says Steve Norris, a director at Lambert Smith Hampton.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
In the CFP Board survey, 78% of certified financial planners reported that their clients are concerned about Social Security’s long-term viability, and 73% said concerns about Medicare were an issue.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 24, 2026
It warns that safeguarding election integrity is a prerequisite for any candidate’s viability, regardless of message.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
Retired miller John Lovett estimates that fewer than 100 traditional gristmills nationwide still operate at commercial viability.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
His claims provoked a widespread concern with the replication of his experiments precisely because the viability of Aristotelian orthodoxy was now at stake.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
