expendability

UK: /ɪksˌpendəˈbɪlətɪ/

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026

ex•pend•a•ble /ɪkˈspɛndəbəl/   adj. 

1. capable of being spent or expended:
   The city has a million dollars of expendable funds for street repair.
2. not worth keeping or maintaining:
   Lives must be saved, but the equipment is expendable.

n. [countable]

3. Usually, expendables. [plural] an expendable person or thing.

ex•pend•a•bil•i•ty /ɪkˌspɛndəˈbɪlɪti/  n. [uncountable] See -pend-.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026

ex•pend•a•ble  (ik spen′də bəl), adj. 

1. capable of being expended.
2. (of an item of equipment or supply) consumed in use or not reusable.
3. considered to be not worth keeping or maintaining.
4. Military (of personnel, equipment, or supplies) capable of being sacrificed in order to accomplish a military objective.

n. 

5. Usually, expendables. an expendable person or thing.

• expend + -able 1795–1805

ex•pend′a•bil′i•ty, n.