readable

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read·a·ble

(rē′də-bəl)

adj.

1. Easily read; legible: a readable typeface.

2. Pleasurable or interesting to read: a readable story.

read′a·bil′i·ty (read′a·ble·ness) n.

read′a·bly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

readable

(ˈriːdəbəl)

adj

1. (of handwriting, etc) able to be read or deciphered; legible

2. (of style of writing) interesting, easy, or pleasant to read

ˌreadaˈbility, ˈreadableness n

ˈreadably adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

read•a•ble

(ˈri də bəl)

adj.

1. easy or interesting to read.

2. capable of being read; legible.

[1560–70]

read`a•bil′i•ty, read′a•ble•ness, n.

read′a•bly, adv.

readable

– legible

1. 'readable'

If you say that a book or article is readable, you mean that it is interesting and not boring or difficult to understand.

He has written a most readable and entertaining autobiography.

2. 'legible'

If you can recognize the letters and words that a piece of writing consists of, you do not say that the writing is 'readable'. You say that it is legible.

The inscription is still perfectly legible.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Adj.

readable - easily deciphered

decipherable, clear

legible - (of handwriting, print, etc.) capable of being read or deciphered; "legible handwriting"

readable

adjective

1. enjoyable, interesting, gripping, entertaining, pleasant, enthralling, easy to read, worth reading This is an impeccably researched and very readable book.
enjoyable heavy, boring, dull, pretentious, turgid, unreadable, heavy going, badly-written, as dry as dust

2. legible, clear, plain, understandable, comprehensible, intelligible, decipherable a typewritten and readable script
legible incomprehensible, unintelligible, illegible, unreadable, indecipherable

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

مَقْروئهمُمكِن قرائته

čitelnýčtivý

læseliglæseværdig

lesenswert leserlich

luettavalukukelpoinensujuva

lisible

olvasmányoselolvashatóérdekesolvasható

læsilegur

leggibile interessante

leesbaar

leseverdig lettlest

dobre sa čítajúci

ilginç ve okunmaya değerokunabilirokunaklı

使人爱读的易读的笔迹清楚的

readable

[ˈriːdəbl] ADJ [writing] → legible; [book etc] → entretenido, que puede leerse

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

readable

[ˈriːdəb^əl] adj

(= pleasant to read) → agréable à lire
eminently readable → d'une lecture très agréable

(= easy to read) → facile à lire

(= legible) → lisible

(COMPUTING) [file] → lisible

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

readable

adj (= legible) handwriting → lesbar; (= worth reading) book etc → lesenswert; not very readable (= illegible) → schlecht lesbar; (= not worth reading) → nicht besonders lesenswert

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

readable

[ˈriːdəbl] adj (book) → che si legge volentieri; (writing) → leggibile

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

read

(riːd) – past tense, past participle read (red) – verb

1. to look at and understand (printed or written words or other signs). Have you read this letter?; Can your little girl read yet?; Can anyone here read Chinese?; to read music; I can read (= understand without being told) her thoughts/mind.

2. to learn by reading. I read in the paper today that the government is going to cut taxes again.

3. to read aloud, usually to someone else. I read my daughter a story before she goes to bed; I read to her before she goes to bed.

4. to pass one's time by reading books etc for pleasure etc. I don't have much time to read these days.

5. to study (a subject) at a university etc.

6. to look at or be able to see (something) and get information from it. I can't read the clock without my glasses; The nurse read the thermometer.

7. to be written or worded; to say. His letter reads as follows: `Dear Sir, ...'

8. (of a piece of writing etc) to make a (good, bad etc) impression. This report reads well.

9. (of dials, instruments etc) to show a particular figure, measurement etc. The thermometer reads –5C.

10. to (cause a word, phrase etc to) be replaced by another, eg in a document or manuscript. There is one error on this page – For `two yards', read `two metres'; `Two yards long' should read `two metres long'.

noun

the act, or a period, of reading. I like a good read before I go to sleep.

ˈreadable adjective

(negative unreadable).

1. easy or pleasant to read. I don't usually enjoy poetry but I find these poems very readable.

2. able to be read. Your handwriting is scarcely readable.

ˈreadableness noun

ˌreadaˈbility noun

ˈreader noun

1. a person who reads books, magazines etc. He's a keen reader.

2. a person who reads a particular newspaper, magazine etc. The editor asked readers to write to him with their opinions.

3. a reading-book, especially for children or for learners of a foreign language. a Latin reader.

ˈreadership noun

the (number of) people who read a newspaper, magazine etc.

ˈreading noun

1. the act of reading.

2. the reading of something aloud, as a (public) entertainment. a poetry reading.

3. the ability to read. The boy is good at reading.

4. the figure, measurement etc on a dial, instrument etc. The reading on the thermometer was –5 C.

reading-

1. for the purpose of reading. reading-glasses; a reading-room in a library.

2. for learning to read. a reading-book.

ˈreading material noun

a list of books, stories, articles etc that need to be read for one's studies.

ˈreading matter noun

something written for others to read (eg books, newspapers, letters). There's a lot of interesting reading matter in our local library.

ˈread-out – plural ˈread-outs – noun

data produced by a computer, eg on magnetic or paper tape.

read between the lines

to look for or find information (eg in a letter) which is not actually stated.

read off

to read from a dial, instrument etc. The engineer read off the temperatures one by one.

read on

to continue to read; to read further. He paused for a few moments, and then read on.

read out

to read aloud. Read out the answers to the questions.

read over/through

to read from beginning to end. I'll read through your manuscript, and let you know if I find any mistakes.

References in classic literature ?

He opened it, and I saw a bundle of papers, yellow but still readable.

View in context

You surprise me; I thought it had not been readable. But, my dearest Catherine, have you settled what to wear on your head tonight?

View in context

The woman had disappeared, but there were her written words left behind her: visible to my mother as well as to me, readable by my mother's eyes as well as by mine!

View in context

And then, for him, an accomplished craftsman in his trade, thinking was distinctly "bad business." His business was to write a readable account.

View in context

So surely as another quarter chimed, there was a movement in the crowd--as if something had passed over it--as if the light upon them had been changed--in which the fact was readable as on a brazen dial, figured by a giant's hand.

View in context

It is my duty to point it out in the proper quarter.' 'Oh,' said I, 'that fellow--what's his name?--the brickmaker, will make a readable report for you.' He appeared con- founded for a moment.

View in context

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This is the current Florida statute related to insurance policy readability: chapter 627.4145 (Readable language in insurance policies.)

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Under the law, motorcycle license plates must be displayed in front and at the back of the vehicle and must be readable from a distance of 15 meters.

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According to Galvante, they were given a "little leeway" in producing the plates but this must be readable from a distance of 15 meters from the vehicle.