Dispensable
adj, noun ·Moderate ·College level
Definitions
- 1 Something that can reasonably be dispensed with; something unnecessary.
- 1 Able to be done without; easily replaced.
- 2 Capable of being dispensed.
"The reward could be a preferred food, a sticker, blowing some bubbles, a noisemaker the child enjoys, a pat on the back, or some other easily dispensable reward that does not take the child away from the task at hand for more than a moment or two."
- 3 Subject to dispensation; possible to relax, exempt from, or annul. usually
"Jones' use of the term 'Ecclesiastical Law' in his definition of dispensations in Roman Catholic canon law points to the Roman Catholic distinction between divine law, from which no dispensation is possible, and merely ecclesiastical law, which is dispensable in certain circumstances."
- 4 Not essential to be taken in as part of an organism's diet, as it can be synthesized de novo.
"The difference in absorption rate is not surprising since whey has a high percentage of indispensable amino acids, which are absorbed more rapidly than dispensable amino acids."
- 1 capable of being dispensed with or done without wordnet
Example
More examples"The reward could be a preferred food, a sticker, blowing some bubbles, a noisemaker the child enjoys, a pat on the back, or some other easily dispensable reward that does not take the child away from the task at hand for more than a moment or two."
Etymology
From dispense + -able.
Related phrases
More for "dispensable"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.