Expressible

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Able to be communicated, conveyed, or represented through language, art, or other means of representation
2. Capable of being articulated, conveyed, or made known through verbal or non-verbal forms of expression
3. Possible to portray, represent, or communicate thoughts and feelings effectively through various mediums

Etymology: "Expressible" is a straightforward formation: the adjective "express" plus the suffix "-ible," which means "able to be" or "capable of being" something. The suffix itself came into English through a chain of Latin-based forms, with the Latin "-ibilis" passing into Old French as "-ible" before English adopted it. So a word meaning "able to be expressed" is built from an older English word and a suffix that traveled through French. The base word "express" carries the more interesting history. It descends from Latin "exprimere," meaning to press out, squeeze out, or represent, and its earliest English senses were tied to that physical idea of pressing something out. Over time the sense shifted from pressing out juice or liquid toward pressing out thoughts and feelings in speech or writing, which is the sense that "expressible" builds on.

Synonyms: articulable, communicable

Antonyms: inexpressible, unspeakable