3 syllables: Le, gi, ble. Stress on Le.
LEJ-uh-buhl
/ˈlɛdʒəbəl/
Legible is pronounced LEJ-uh-buhl (/ˈlɛdʒəbəl/). It has three syllables (Le-gi-ble), with the stress on "Le". Legible describes text that can be read easily and unambiguously; it conveys clear shapes and strokes that are easy to decipher. As an adjective, it applies to handwriting and type, indicating readability and clarity rather than beauty. In use, it signals that letters and words are produced with sufficient precision to be understood without effort.
adjectiveLegible describes text that can be read easily and unambiguously; it conveys clear shapes and strokes that are easy to decipher. As an adjective, it applies to handwriting and type, indicating readability and clarity rather than beauty. In use, it signals that letters and words are produced with sufficient precision to be understood without effort.
How to Pronounce Legible
"Her handwriting is legible enough for the secretary to transcribe without errors."
"The font chosen for the poster was legible from across the room."
"Clear headings and legible margins make the report easier to skim."
Say LEH-juh-buhl with primary stress on the first syllable. IPA US: /ˈlɛdʒəbl/; UK: /ˈlɛdʒɪbəl/; AU: /ˈlɛdʒɪbəl/. The initial /l/ is clear, /ɛ/ as in 'bed', the /dʒ/ as in 'judge', followed by a reduced /ə/ (schwa) in the middle, and a light /bəl/ at the end. Visualize: LE-dge-uh-bull, keeping the middle syllable short and relaxed. For listening practice, hear it in connected speech: “legible handwriting.”
Common errors: misplacing stress (say ‘leg-i-ble’ with stress on second syllable), softening /dʒ/ to /d/ or /j/ (would sound like ‘ledge-uh-bull’), and over-emphasizing the final -ble as /bl/ instead of a light /bə/. Correction: keep primary stress on the first syllable, pronounce /dʒ/ as a single affricate /dʒ/, and reduce the final cluster to /-əbl/ with a soft /l/.”
US: /ˈlɛdʒəbl/ with a clear /ɡ/ blend and a strong short e; UK: /ˈlɛdʒɪbəl/ with a slightly more centralized vowel and a less pronounced final /l/; AU: /ˈlɛdʒɪbəl/ similar to UK but with Australian vowel flattening and a non-rhotic display becoming lighter. In all accents, the /ˈl/ onset and /dʒ/ vowel cluster are key. The most noticeable variation is in the middle vowel and the end vowel quality, influenced by rhoticity and vowel height differences.
Two main challenges: the /dʒ/ cluster after /l/ requires precise tongue blade placement to avoid a /g/ or /j/ mispronunciation; and the unstressed middle /ə/ (schwa) can be elided or reduced too much, turning it into a quick /ɪ/ or /i/ sound. Focus on a steady /ə/ between /dʒ/ and /b/, keeping the onset crisp and the final /l/ light but audible.
In careful speech, you’ll hear /-bl/ in a light, syllabic way like /-bəl/; most speakers reduce the middle vowel, producing /-bl̩/ or /-bəɫ/ depending on accent. In rapid speech, the middle vowel often becomes a quick schwa /ə/ or a nasalized variant, giving /ˈlɛdʒəbl/ (US) or /ˈlɛdʒɪbəl/ (UK/AU). The key is sustaining a brief schwa between /dʒ/ and /b/ so you don’t merge sounds.
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Legible comes from late Latin legibilis, from legere 'to read'. The Latin root leg- relates to reading and gathering, with the suffix -ibilis indicating capability or ability. In English, legibilis developed into legible in the 16th–17th centuries as printers and writers sought terms to describe text that could be read without strain. The sense broadened to handwriting and typography, emphasizing clarity of letter forms and spacing. The evolution tracks from scholarly and scribal contexts to general usage in education and publishing, where legibility (the noun form) denotes readability and legibility’s companion, illegibility, marks the contrast. First known print attestations appear in technical, grammarian, and typographic discourse of early modern English, aligning with advances in movable type and standardized typefaces.
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Words that rhyme with "Legible"
-me) sounds
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