passable

Passable is an adjective with several related senses. In everyday use it means satisfactory or adequate, though not outstanding. A passable meal, a passable performance, or a passable rating suggests that something meets a minimum standard but falls short of excellence.

Passable also describes something that can be passed through or traversed, such as a road, bridge, or doorway that is safe to use, though not perfect. In this sense it is common in fields like transportation planning, logistics, and emergency response to describe terrain or routes that are navigable.

Historically, the word derives from Old French passable, from passer to pass, and entered English in the early modern period. The noun passability or the adjective passable convey the same idea of feasibility or tolerability.

Usage notes: in formal writing, more precise words like acceptable, adequate, or satisfactory are often preferred. In informal use, passable can imply mediocrity or even slight disdain, as in "The film was passable at best." In some contexts, especially when describing a person’s appearance, it can be perceived as crude or offensive; prefer more respectful language.

Antonyms include unpassable or impassable, meaning not able to be passed or traversed. Related terms include passability (the degree to which something is passable) and passage (the act of passing) or pass through as a verb.

See also: pass, passage, passability, impassable, acceptable, tolerable.