Intelligibilities

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The qualities or states of being comprehensible or understandable
2. The various forms or levels through which something can be clearly perceived or grasped
3. The degrees to which information or concepts can be conveyed and interpreted effectively

Etymology: "Intelligibilities" is simply the plural of "intelligibility," so it names several degrees or instances of clarity at once. The noun "intelligibility" is a learned borrowing from Latin "intelligibilitas," formed from "intelligibilis" ("intelligible") and the suffix "-tas," which turns adjectives into abstract nouns. The adjective underneath carries the older sense. "Intelligibilis" comes from "intelligere," a Latin verb built from "inter" ("between" or "among") and "legere" ("to choose, pick out, read"). Its original picture is of distinguishing one thing from another, and "intelligible" came to mean able to be grasped by the mind, in contrast to what is perceived by the senses.

Synonyms: clarities, lucidities, explicitness, distinctness, comprehensibility

Antonyms: ambiguities, obscurities, confusions, uncertainties, misunderstandings