Vocability

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality of a word or sound that allows it to be articulated or pronounced clearly
2. The ability of a sequence of sounds or words to be expressed vocally and understood
3. A characteristic of language elements that makes them capable of being spoken aloud

Etymology: "Vocability" is a plain formation: the noun "vocable," meaning a word or a speakable sound-unit, with the suffix "-ability" attached to turn it into a quality. Its sense is therefore literal, a property of the elements of language that lets them be pronounced aloud. The base "vocable" comes from Latin "vocabulum," a derivative of "vocare" ("to call" or "to name"), which also gave English "vocal" and "vocation." The suffix "-ability" comes from Latin "-abilitas" by way of Old French, and it is the same ending found in "readability" or "portability." Attaching it to "vocable" produces a term that describes how speakable a sound or word is, rather than the word itself.

Synonyms: articulateness, expressiveness