visibility

American  

[viz-uh-bil-i-tee] / ˌvɪz əˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

1. the state or fact of being visible.

2. the relative ability to be seen under given conditions of distance, light, atmosphere, etc..

   low visibility due to fog.

3. Also called visual range.  Meteorology. the distance at which a given standard object can be seen and identified with the unaided eye.

4. the ability to give a relatively large range of unobstructed vision.

   a windshield with good visibility.

5. Typography. legibility.

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visibility British  

/ ˌvɪzɪˈbɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. the condition or fact of being visible

2. clarity of vision or relative possibility of seeing

3. the range of vision

   visibility is 500 yards

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Other Word Forms

• intervisibility noun
• nonvisibility noun
• previsibility noun

Etymology

Origin of visibility

1575–85; < Late Latin vīsibilitās, equivalent to Latin vīsibili ( s ) visible + -tās -ty ²

Explanation

Use the noun visibility to describe how well you can see something, like the great visibility from the top of a mountain on a clear day. In addition to meaning "how well you can see," visibility can also mean "how well others can see something." So, the reflective stripes on your running pants give you visibility in the dark because they help other people see you. Another kind of visibility is being in the public eye, like an actor whose visibility helps him land roles in movies and promote the causes he cares about, like literacy or helping endangered animals.

Example Sentences

Because of their size and visibility, plant cells serve as a useful system for studying how peroxisomes work.

From Science Daily • Apr. 25, 2026

Lucy Stewart, deputy publishing director at Hodder & Stoughton, says TikTok is giving some genres greater visibility.

From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026

My big visibility break didn’t come until I was 38-ish, playing Queen Cersei Lannister in eight seasons of HBO’s “Game of Thrones,” from 2011 to 2019.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026

Calio of RTX said the recent contracts with the Pentagon "will give the kind of long-term visibility that the supply chain will need to invest, which is critically important."

From Barron's • Apr. 21, 2026

The children who came along the beach, singly or in twos, leapt into visibility when they crossed the line from heat haze to nearer sand.

From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding