eligible

American  

[el-i-juh-buhl] / ˈɛl ɪ dʒə bəl /

adjective

1. fit or proper to be chosen; worthy of choice; desirable.

   to marry an eligible bachelor.

   Synonyms:

   suitable, fitting

   Antonyms:

   unacceptable, unsuitable, ineligible

2. meeting the stipulated requirements, as to participate, compete, or work; qualified.

3. legally qualified to be elected or appointed to office.

   eligible for the presidency.

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noun

1. a person or thing that is eligible.

   Among the eligibles, only a few are running for office.

eligible British  

/ ˈɛlɪdʒəbəl /

adjective

1. fit, worthy, or qualified, as for an office or function

2. desirable and worthy of being chosen, esp as a spouse

   an eligible young man

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Other Word Forms

• eligibility noun
• eligibleness noun
• eligibly adverb
• noneligible adjective

Etymology

Origin of eligible

First recorded in 1555–65; from Middle French or directly from Late Latin ēligibilis, equivalent to Latin ē- “out of, from” + lig- (combining form of leg-, stem of legere “to choose, select”) + -bilis “capable of, susceptible of, tending to”; e- ¹, -ible

Example Sentences

He became eligible on Friday after sitting out the first part of the season.

From Los Angeles Times

All federally staffed airports are eligible for the program, but most of the country’s major airports don’t participate.

From The Wall Street Journal

Processing the consolidation and applications could take months, so experts are urging borrowers who need these plans to take steps now if they hope to stay eligible.

From MarketWatch

To be eligible, you must have no more than $2,000 in countable assets.

From MarketWatch

The council said it had a "responsibility to protect public funds" and the application "was not considered eligible".

From BBC

Related Words

• acceptable
• likely
• qualified
• suitable