mobile
adjective
capable of moving or being moved readily.
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mobile
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Mobile
Mobilenouna seaport in SW Alabama at the mouth of the Mobile River.
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-mobile
-mobilea combining form extracted from automobile, occurring as the final element in compounds denoting specialized types of motorized conveyances: snowmobile; especially productive in coinages naming vehicles equipped to procure or deliver objects, provide services, etc., to people without regular access to these: bloodmobile; bookmobile; clubmobile; jazzmobile.
mobile
1 American
[moh-buhl, -beel, -bahyl]
/ ˈmoʊ bəl, -bil, -baɪl /
adjective
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capable of moving or being moved readily.
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Digital Technology. pertaining to or noting a cell phone, usually one with computing ability, or a portable, wireless computing device used while held in the hand, as in
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utilizing motor vehicles for ready movement.
a mobile library.
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Military. permanently equipped with vehicles for transport.
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flowing freely, as a liquid.
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changeable or changing easily in expression, mood, purpose, etc..
a mobile face.
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quickly responding to impulses, emotions, etc., as the mind.
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Sociology.
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characterized by or permitting the mixing of social groups.
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characterized by or permitting relatively free movement from one social class or level to another.
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of or relating to a mobile.
noun
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a piece of sculpture having delicately balanced units constructed of rods and sheets of metal or other material suspended in midair by wire or twine so that the individual parts can move independently, as when stirred by a breeze.
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Informal. a mobile home.
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Citizens Band Radio Slang. a vehicle.
Mobile
2
American
[moh-beel, moh-beel]
/ moʊˈbil, ˈmoʊ bil /
noun
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a seaport in SW Alabama at the mouth of the Mobile River.
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a river in SW Alabama, formed by the confluence of the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers. 38 miles (61 km) long.
-mobile
3
American
-mobile
1
British
/ məʊˌbiːl /
suffix
Mobile
2
British
/ ˈməʊbiːl, məʊˈbiːl /
noun
mobile
3
British
/ ˈməʊbaɪl /
adjective
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having freedom of movement; movable
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changing quickly in expression
a mobile face
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sociol (of individuals or social groups) moving within and between classes, occupations, and localities
upwardly mobile
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(of military forces) able to move freely and quickly to any given area
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informal (postpositive) having transport available
are you mobile tonight?
noun
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a sculpture suspended in midair with delicately balanced parts that are set in motion by air currents
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( as modifier ) Compare stabile
mobile sculpture
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short for mobile phone
mobile
Cultural
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Alexander Calder, a twentieth-century American sculptor, is known for his mobiles.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of mobile
First recorded in 1450–1500; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin, neuter of mōbilis “movable,” contraction of assumed movibilis, equivalent to movi- (stem of movēre “to set in motion, impel, move”) + -bilis adjective suffix; see origin at move, -ble
Explanation
When something is mobile it can move or be moved easily. If you walk to the end of the block talking on your cell phone, you are a mobile being using a mobile device. A mobile is something you hang over a crib to entertain the baby, or a scale model of the universe. In 1940, the word mobile was first used to refer to a house that could be easily moved — a mobile home. If someone says to you jokingly that they "are not mobile," it means that their car is not working. It will be hard for them to be upwardly mobile, or to improve their social status, if they don't get mobile and get to work soon!
Vocabulary lists containing mobile
The London Eye Mystery
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Week 4 Spelling
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Founded in 1970 by Trinity College Cambridge, the park has been responsible for breakthroughs including cancer drugs, Bluetooth technology and mobile phone chips.
From BBC • May 19, 2026
Wearers will be able to access information, manage daily tasks, navigate their surroundings, communicate, and interact with mobile apps, according to company press releases.
From Barron's • May 19, 2026
The mobile murals will be placed throughout LAX to welcome visitors arriving for the World Cup.
From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026
That outbreak sickened at least 28,616 people and killed another 11,310; it was of concern because it impacted highly mobile groups of people.
From MarketWatch • May 17, 2026
Pond ran, quicker than he had previously, for a good distance before Nathan realized that he wasn’t taking him to Nali’s mobile home.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.