Words / C2

LEJ-uh-bl/ˈledʒəbl/

Legible means clear enough to be read: legible handwriting, barely legible. Readable is everyday and wider (of style as well as script); handwriting (already in the dictionary) is the thing being judged. Opaque (already in the dictionary) is the opposite flavour of prose you cannot see through. A clear slogan is still not a sample size.

Meaning

Clear enough to be read.

Examples

• “A legible slogan is still not a sample-size sentence.”
• “Readable is everyday-wider. Handwriting is the script (already in A2). Opaque is hard to see through (already in C2) — the contrast. Clear type can be exact. Clear type that never states the n is branding. Write the number; then the font.”

Good to know

Clear enough to read. Everyday: readable. Close: handwriting (already in A2). Contrast: opaque (obscure — already in C2). Type ≠ an n.

Near in meaning

readable, clear, decipherable, intelligible

New