Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Plausible |
PlausibleAdjective1. Apparently reasonable and valid. 2. Likely but not certain to be or become true or real; "a likely result"; "he foresaw a probable loss". 3. Within the realm of credibility; "not a very likely excuse"; "a plausible story". 4. Appearing to merit belief or acceptance; "a credible witness"; "a plausible story". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "plausible" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1350. (references) |
Etymology: Plausible \Plau"si*ble\, adjective. [Latin expression plausibilis praiseworthy, from plaudere, plausum, to applaud, clap the hands, strike, beat.]. (references) |
Synonyms: PlausibleSynonyms: credible (adj), likely (adj), probable (adj). (additional references) |
| Antonyms: implausible (adj), improbable (adj). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Approbation | Deserving of praise, worthy of praise;Noun: praiseworthy, commendable, of estimation; good; meritorious, estimable, creditable, plausible, unimpeachable; beyond all praise. |
Falsehood | Artificial, contrived; canting; hypocritical, jesuitical, pharisaical; tartuffish; Machiavelian; double, double tongued, double faced, double handed, double minded, double hearted, double dealing; Janus faced; smooth-faced, smooth spoken, smooth tongued; plausible; mealy-mouthed; affected. |
Flattery | Blandiloquent, specious; fine-spoken, fair spoken; plausible, servile, sycophantic, fulsome; courtierly, courtier-like. |
Probability | Plausible, specious, ostensible, colorable, ben trovato, well-founded, reasonable, credible, easy of belief, presumable, presumptive, apparent. |
Reasoning, | Deceptive, sophistical, jesuitical; illusive, illusory; specious, hollow, plausible, ad captandum, evasive; irrelevant. |
Vindication | Excusable, defensible, pardonable; venial, veniable; specious, plausible, justifiable. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Plausible |
| English words defined with "plausible": Colorable, confabulation, covert operation, credible ♦ Faair-spoken ♦ likely, line of gab ♦ patter, Plausibleize ♦ reasonableness ♦ sophistic, sophistical, specious, spiel, spurious ♦ tenability, tenableness. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "plausible": Back and Edge ♦ cow orker, Curse of Scotland ♦ Hanlon's Razor ♦ Liberals ♦ minister ♦ PALMISTRY ♦ uncertain reasoning ♦ Vine. (references) |
| Non-English Usage: "Plausible" is also a word in the following languages with English translations in parentheses. French (likely, plausible), Spanish (plausible). |
| Domain | Usage | |
Clever | Quick Thinking: Offers plausible excuses. (references; author: unknown) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit |  | On the stroke of twelve the plausible American comedy drama : by Joseph Le Brandt. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Henry Mencken | There's always an easy solution to every problem -- neat, plausible and wrong. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Incidence of certain sexually transmitted diseases has been used as a plausible surrogate for HIV seroconversion. (references) | |
Although much needs to be accomplished, the emergence of plausible mechanisms for the therapeutic effects of acupuncture is encouraging. (references) | ||
A plausible explanation for the cytokine findings in HPS is that TNF alpha or beta and IL-2 levels may have been strikingly increased in the period leading up to the acute illness, or that a surge of one or another or all of these cytokines led to rapid onset of pulmonary edema and shock. (references) | ||
Human Rights | Guatemala | The prosecutors assigned to the cases, including Berta Julia Morales, failed to develop plausible motives for the murders despite evidence of a pattern of killings conducted by a sophisticated and well-coordinated organization. (references) |
Guatemala | There were plausible allegations of politically motivated killings by nonstate actors during the year, with only limited willingness on the part of prosecutors to investigate such murders. (references) | |
Minorities | Kenya | Each group claims to have a larger number of adherents than is plausible, and some Muslim groups believe that the Government and business communities deliberately have impeded development in predominantly Muslim areas. (references) |
Political Economy | Georgia | But as few can imagine a plausible alternative, cynicism and personal feuding have become the main staples of Georgian political life. (references) |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | MINISTER, n. An agent of a higher power with a lower responsibility. In diplomacy and officer sent into a foreign country as the visible embodiment of his sovereign's hostility. His principal qualification is a degree of plausible inveracity next below that of an ambassador. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
John Adams | 1797-1801 | A rotation of all offices, as well as of representatives and counselors, has many advocates, and is contended for with many plausible arguments. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Plausible" is generally used as an adjective (general or positive) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Plausible" is used about 809 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 100% | 809 | 8,617 |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "plausible": plausible inference ♦ plausible microinference ♦ plausible move generation ♦ plausible reasoning. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "plausible": plausible-looking. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
plausible | 7 |
deniability plausible | 7 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "plausible"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Afrikaans | aanneemlik (acceptable). (various references) | |
Albanian | i besueshëm (authoritative, believable, certain, conceivable, credible, dependable, probable, pukka, reliable), bindës (cogent, conclusive, convincing, decisive, forcible, persuasive). (various references) | |
Arabic | معقول (believable, comprehensible, credible, feasible, intelligible, logical, plausibility, possible, rational, reasonable, sensible, understandable), جدير ظاهريا بالتصديق, ظاهري (apparent, cursory, ostensible, outward, superficial). (various references) | |
Bulgarian | правдоподобен (believable, colorable, colourable, credible, feasible, likely, probable, verisimilar), приемлив (acceptable, admissible, arguable, eligible, possible, reasonable, tidy, unobjectionable). (various references) | |
Chinese | 振振有词. (various references) | |
Czech | pravdìpodobný (colourable, feasible, likely, presumable, probable, supposed, verisimilar), přijatelný (acceptable, palatable, pervious, satisfactory, tolerable, within reason). (various references) | |
Danish | plausibel slutning (informal inference, plausible inference), plausibel ræsonneren (plausible reasoning), plausibel mikroinferens (plausible microinference), plausibel inferens (informal inference, plausible inference), heuristisk beskæring (forward pruning, heuristic pruning, plausible move generation), framadbeskæring (forward pruning, heuristic pruning, plausible move generation). (various references) | |
Dutch | waarschijnlijk (likely, probable, probably), waarschijnlijk (probable, probably), waarschýnlýk (likely, probable, probably), geloofwaardig (acceptable), aannemelijk (acceptable), aannemelijk, aannemelýk (acceptable). (various references) | |
Esperanto | kredinda, kredebla. (various references) | |
Faeroese | trúligur (acceptable), rímiligur, eftirfarandi (acceptable). (various references) | |
Farsi | پذیرفتنی (Acceptable, Admissible, Receivable), محتمل (Apt, Likely, Probable, Soso), قابل استماع , باورکردنی (Credibility, Credible, Likely, Probable). (various references) | |
Finnish | uskottava (credible, likely). (various references) | |
French | plausible, vraisamblable, convaincant. (various references) | |
Frisian | oannimlik, leauwenswurdich (acceptable). (various references) | |
German | glaubhaft (acceptable, authentic, believable, credible, genuine, plausibly, probable), plausibel, eingängig (catchy). (various references) | |
Greek | καπάτσοσ (astute, resourceful), εύσχημος, εύλογοσ (justifiable), αληθοφανής (seemingly true). (various references) | |
Hebrew | מתקבל על ""עת (conceivable, likely, reasonable, stands to reason, with in reason), משכ ע (cogent, convincing, evincive, persuasive), סביר לכאור". (various references) | |
Hungarian | kézenfekvő (manifest, no far to seek). (various references) | |
Indonesian | masuk akal (coherent, rational, reasonable). (various references) | |
Italian | plausibile (colorable, colourable, conceivable, evident), verosimile (convincing, likely, probable). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 尤もらしい , 尤も (although, but then, natural, quite right). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | もっともらしい, もっとも (although, but then, extremely, most, natural, quite right). (various references) | |
Korean | 그럴"한. (various references) | |
Manx | so-chredjallagh. (various references) | |
Papiamen | kreibel (acceptable). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | ausibleplay.(various references) | |
Polish | wiarygodny (acceptable). (various references) | |
Portuguese | possível (achievable, attainable, coming, earthen, earthly, feasible, likely, possible, problematic, prospective), plausível (colorable, colourable, likely, verisimilar), verossímil (credible, feasible, likely, probable, verisimilar), razoável (acceptable, fair, livable, liveable, middle-of-the-road, middling, modest, possible, reasonable, right-minded, sane, sensible, tolerable, tol-lol, within reason), aceitável (acceptable, admissible, decent, eligible, passable, possible). (various references) | |
Romanian | plauzibil (colourable), acceptabil (acceptable, acceptably, admissible, agreeable, allowable, eligible, fair, fairly, livable, palatable, passable, passably, possible, reasonable, satisfactory). (various references) | |
Russian | умеющий внушать доверие, благовидный (colorable, colourable, specious), правдоподобный (colourable, verisimilar). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | plauzibilan, verodostojan (believable, credible, trustworthy). (various references) | |
Spanish | fidedigno (acceptable, credible, informed, reliable, trustworthy), plausible. (various references) | |
Swedish | sannolik (feasible, likely, presumptive, probable), rimlig (fair, reasonable), antaglig (acceptable, likely, presumable, probable, reasonable, suspicious). (various references) | |
Turkish | yüze gülücü (honeyed, honied, sleek, smooth-faced, sugary), olası (a priori, contingent, contingently, earthly, eventual, feasible, in the air, in the cards, incidental, liable, like, likely, off, on the cards, possible, probable, prospective, within the bounds of possibility), mantıklı (common-sensical, just, legitimate, level, level headed, likely, logical, rational, reasonable, sensible, valid), makul (acceptable, comprehensible, conceivable, fair, judicious, just, level, logical, moderate, possible, probable, reasonable, sane, sensible, sober, sober minded), akla yakın. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | правдоподібний (believable, credible, likely, probable, specious, verisimilar), пристойний (becoming, decent, decorous, presentable, proper, white). (various references) | |
Vietnamese | có vẻ hợp lý. (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | plausibilis, speciosa, speciosae, speciosam, speciosas, speciosi, speciosior, speciosique, speciosis, speciosissima, speciosissimam, speciosissimas, speciositas, specioso, speciosum, speciosus. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "plausible": plausibleness, plausiblenesses. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "plausible": implausible, unplausible. (additional references) | |
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"Plausible" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: pausible, plaucible, plausable, plauseable, plauseble, plausiable, plausibel, plausibler, Plautilla, ploausible. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "plausible" (pronounced plô"zubul) |
| 8 | p l ô" z u b u l | implausible. |
| 5 | -z u b u l | indivisible, inexcusable, infeasible, advisable, analyzable, disposable, divisible, excusable, exercisable, feasible, fusible, inadvisable, invisible, realizable, recognizable, reusable, sizable, sizeable, unfeasible, unrecognizable, unusable, usable, visible. |
| 4 | -u b u l | incurable, indefatigable, indefensible, indefinable, indelible, indescribable, indestructible, indispensable, indisputable, indistinguishable, indomitable, inedible, ineffable, ineligible, inequitable, inescapable, inevitable, inexhaustible, inexorable, inexplicable, infallible, inflammable, inflatable, acceptable, accessible, abominable, accountable, achievable, actionable, adaptable, addressable, adjustable, admirable, admissible, adoptable, adorable, affable, affordable, agreeable, allowable, amenable, amendable, amiable, amicable, answerable, appealable, applicable, appreciable, approachable, approvable, arable, arguable, attainable, attributable, audible, available, avoidable, bankable, bearable, believable, billable, biodegradable, breakable, buildable, burnable, callable, cannibal, capable, changeable, chargeable, charitable, classifiable, collapsible, collectible, Combinable, comfortable, commendable, communicable, comparable, compatible, compensable, comprehensible, conceivable, confirmable, considerable, constable, consumable, contemptible, contestable, controllable, convertible, copyrightable, countable, credible, creditable, crucible, culpable, curable, debatable, deductible, defensible, definable, degradable, delectable, deliverable, demonstrable, dependable, deplorable, deployable, depreciable, describable, desirable, despicable, detachable, detectable, determinable, developable, digestible, disagreeable, discernible, discountable, discoverable, dishonorable, dispensable, disreputable, distinguishable, doable, drinkable, drivable, durable, eatable, edible, electable, eligible, Embraceable, employable, enforceable, enjoyable, enviable, equable, equitable, erasable, erodible, estimable, exchangeable, excitable, excludable, execrable, expandable, expendable, explainable, exportable, extendable, extendible, fallible, fashionable, fathomable, favorable, fissionable, fixable, flammable, flexible, forcible, foreseeable, forfeitable, forgettable, forgivable, formidable, fungible, gullible, habitable, harvestable, heritable, hon, honorable, horrible, hospitable, identifiable, illegible, imaginable, imitable, immiscible, immovable, immutable, impassable, impeachable, impeccable, impenetrable, imperceptible, impermissible, implacable, implantable, imponderable, impossible, impracticable, impregnable, impressionable, improbable, inaccessible, inadmissible, inalienable, inapplicable, inaudible, incalculable, incapable, incomparable, incompatible, incomprehensible, incompressible, inconceivable, incontrovertible, incorrigible, incredible, soluble, solvable, spendable, submersible, suggestible, suitable, supportable, survivable, susceptible, sustainable, syllable, talkable, tangible, taxable, teachable, tenable, terrible, inflexible, inheritable, inhospitable, inimitable, injectable, innumerable, inoperable, insatiable, inscrutable, inseparable, insoluble, insufferable, insupportable, insurmountable, intangible, intelligible, interchangeable, interminable, interruptible, intolerable, intractable, invaluable, investable, invincible, inviolable, invulnerable, irascible, irreconcilable, irrefutable, irremediable, irreparable, irreplaceable, irrepressible, irresistible, irresponsible, irreversible, irrevocable, irritable, issuable, justifiable, knowledgeable, lamentable, laudable, laughable, leasable, legible, liable, likable, likeable, livable, lovable, malleable, manageable, mandible, maneuverable, marketable, measurable, memorable, microwavable, miscible, miserable, moldable, movable, navigable, negligible, negotiable, noncallable, nonconvertible, nondeductible, nondurable, nonrefundable, nonrenewable, nontaxable, nontransferable, notable, noticeable, objectionable, observable, obtainable, operable, ostensible, palatable, palpable, parable, passable, patentable, payable, peaceable, perceptible, perishable, permeable, permissible, personable, persuadable, pitiable, pleasurable, pliable, portable, possible, potable, practicable, predictable, preferable, presentable, preventable, printable, probable, profitable, programmable, prosecutable, provable, punishable, questionable, quotable, reachable, readable, reasonable, receivable, rechargeable, recordable, recoverable, recyclable, redeemable, redoubtable, reducible, refundable, regrettable, reliable, remarkable, removable, renewable, rentable, repairable, repayable, repeatable, replaceable, reportable, reprehensible, reputable, resealable, resettable, respectable, responsible, retractable, returnable, reversible, revocable, ridable, salable, saleable, salvageable, seasonable, sensible, serviceable, sociable, tolerable, traceable, tractable, tradable, tradeable, trainable, transferable, transferrable, transmittable, transportable, treatable, tunable, typeable, unacceptable, unaccountable, unaffordable, unalienable, unalterable, unanswerable, unassailable, unattainable, unavailable, unavoidable, unbearable, unbeatable, unbelievable, unbuildable, uncollectible, uncomfortable, unconscionable, uncontrollable, undeniable, understandable, undesirable, undetectable, unelectable, unemployable, unenforceable, unenviable, unexplainable, unfashionable, unfathomable, unfavorable, unflappable, unforeseeable, unforgettable, unforgivable, ungovernable, unimaginable, unimpeachable, uninhabitable, uninsurable, unintelligible, unjustifiable, unknowable, unlivable, unmanageable, unmentionable, unmistakable, unobtainable, unpalatable, unpredictable, unprintable, unprofitable, unquestionable, unreachable, unreadable, unreasonable, unreliable, unremarkable, unsalable, unshakable, unsinkable, unsolvable, unspeakable, unstoppable, unsuitable, unsupportable, unsustainable, untenable, unthinkable, untouchable, untraceable, unverifiable, unwinnable, unworkable, variable, vegetable, venerable, verifiable, veritable, viable, voluble, vulnerable, washable, wearable, winnable, workable. |
| 3 | -b u l | able, amble, assemble, babble, Babel, bauble, bible, bramble, bubble, Bumble, cable, cobble, coble, corbel, crumble, cymbal, dabble, Dibble, disable, disassemble, dissemble, double, Drabble, dribble, enable, enfeeble, ennoble, ensemble, fable, feeble, foible, fumble, gable, gamble, Garble, global, gobble, Gribble, grumble, hardscrabble, herbal, hobble, humble, ignoble, immeasurable, immobile, squabble, Stabile, stable, stubble, stumble, symbol, table, intertribal, jumble, kibble, label, libel, marble, mislabel, mobile, mumble, nibble, nimble, noble, nonverbal, pebble, preamble, psychobabble, quibble, rabble, ramble, reassemble, rebel, redouble, relabel, resemble, Roble, rouble, roundtable, rubble, Ruble, rumble, sable, Scrabble, scramble, scribble, shamble, Sibyl, thimble, timetable, treble, tremble, tribal, trouble, tubal, tumble, turntable, umbel, unable, unscramble, unserviceable, unstable, valuable, verbal, wamble, wobble. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-b-e-i-l-l-p-s-u" | |
-1 letter: lapsible. | |
-2 letters: ballies, bullies, pilules, pliable. | |
-3 letters: abseil, alible, allies, bullae, espial, labels, labile, lapels, liable, libels, lipase, pibals, pilaus, pileus, pilule, suable, usable. | |
-4 letters: ables, abuse, aisle, bails, bales, balls, basil, beaus, bells, biles, bills, blase, blips, blues, bulla, bulls, ileal, ileus, label, lapel, lapis, lapse, leaps, libel, lieus, lisle, lubes, pails, paise. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-b-e-i-l-l-p-s-u" | |
+2 letters: implausible, publishable, unplausible. | |
+4 letters: culpabilities, plausibleness, unpublishable. | |
+5 letters: plausibilities, pleasurability. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Photo Album 7. Quotations: Familiar 8. Quotations: Non-fiction | 9. Quotations: Speeches 10. Usage Frequency 11. Expressions 12. Expressions: Internet | 13. Translations: Modern 14. Translations: Ancient 15. Derivations 16. Rhymes | 17. Anagrams 18. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
