- not essential; expendable
- (of a law, vow, etc) able to be relaxed
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
dis•pen•sa•ble /dɪˈspɛnsəbəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- capable of being dispensed with;
not necessary or essential:lots of dispensable items in the budget.
dis•pen•sa•ble
(di spen′sə bəl),USA pronunciation adj.
dis•pen′sa•bil′i•ty, dis•pen′sa•ble•ness, n.
- capable of being dispensed with or done without;
not necessary or essential. - capable of being dispensed or administered:The money is not dispensable at present.
- Religion[Rom. Cath. Ch.]capable of being permitted or forgiven, as an offense or sin.
- Medieval Latin dispēnsābilis, equivalent. to Latin dispēns(āre) to distribute by weight (see dispense) + -ābilis -able
- 1525–35
- 1. expendable, unnecessary; unessential, unimportant, extraneous.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
dispensable /dɪˈspɛnsəbəl/ adj
'dispensable' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):