adjective
serviceable
SUR-viss-uh-bul/ˈsɜːrvɪsəbl/
Usable and adequate for practical purposes.
The worn chair remains serviceable enough to support a heavy toolbox.
Etymology
Serviceable first described someone ready or willing to give service. Applied to things, that readiness became the capacity to do useful work—the basis of today’s sense of being adequately functional.
In context
it was quite a serviceable heart there was good compensation that is to say there was extra growth of muscle to make up for the leaky valve
More examples
- She found a serviceable coat at the thrift store.
- The repair left the bicycle perfectly serviceable.
- A serviceable draft was better than no plan at all.
Forms
serviceable · more serviceable · most serviceable
serviceability noun — practical usability
Similar words
- adequate
- Adequate meets a need; serviceable emphasizes practical usability.
- functional
- Functional works; serviceable often suggests useful despite wear or modest quality.