ponderable

[ pon-der-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. capable of being considered carefully or deeply.
2. capable of being weighed; having appreciable weight.

ponderable

/ ˈpɒndərəbəl /

adjective

1. able to be evaluated or estimated; appreciable
2. capable of being weighed or measured

noun

1. often plural something that can be evaluated or appreciated; a substantial thing

Derived Forms

• ˈponderably, adverb
• ˌponderaˈbility, noun

Other Words From

• ponder·a·bili·ty ponder·a·ble·ness noun
• nonpon·der·a·bili·ty noun
• non·ponder·a·ble adjective
• un·ponder·a·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of ponderable¹

From the Late Latin word ponderābilis, dating back to 1640–50. See ponder, -able

Example Sentences

“Imponderables are ponderable, but answerable, no. Ask a philosopher, but be cautious. If you hear, ‘Eureka!,’ if you think, ‘His answer has captured my question!,’ then here is proof he is a counterfeit.

From Literature

More readily ponderable is a lovely shot, made in Israel, of Bedouin olive pickers asleep under blankets on rugged ground at dawn, with the long, low expanse of a prison in the background.

From The New Yorker

“It dates back to the time in which one thought that the ‘ponderable bodies’ are the only physically real entities,” he later wrote to the British cosmologist Felix Pirani.

From New York Times

How are they even ponderable when valuing health care for one’s self or one’s family?

From Scientific American

The atmosphere was as agreeably light as if ponderable clouds had suddenly rolled out of the room.

From Project Gutenberg