sayable

[ sey-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. of the sort that can be said say or spoken; utterable:

   He felt a great deal that was not sayable.

2. capable of being said say or stated clearly, effectively, etc.:

   The speech is as sayable today as when Demosthenes first composed it.

Other Words From

• un·saya·ble adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of sayable¹

First recorded in 1855–60; say ¹ + -able

Example Sentences

Helen explains that she needs “space” and “time” because what she’s trying to get across is “not fully sayable.”

From Los Angeles Times

Meanwhile, members of the less-educated classes have to walk on eggshells, because they never know when we’ve changed the usage rules, so that something that was sayable five years ago now gets you fired.

From Seattle Times

“The times when Germany dictated from on high what was good art and what was bad art are fortunately over,” he said, adding, “But it is also a lesson of history that not everything should be sayable.”

From New York Times

He rose to notoriety through regular TV appearances, he laces his apocalyptic message with anti-immigrant slurs, he makes the unsayable sayable, he delights in a macho contempt for women, and his slogan might as well be “Make France Great Again.”

From New York Times

Clearly borrowed from the Trump playbook of staying at the top of the news through provocation and outrage, Mr. Zemmour’s declarations have divided the French Jewish community and made the unsayable sayable.

From New York Times