portable

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French portable, or from Latin portabilis.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈpɔː(ɹ)təbəl/, /ˈpɔː(ɹ)təbl̩/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈpɔɹtəbəl/, /ˈpɔɹtəbl̩/, [ˈpʰɔɹɾɪ̈bl̩]
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)təbəl
• Hyphenation: por‧ta‧ble

Adjective

portable (comparative more portable, superlative most portable)

1. Able to be carried or easily moved.
2. Able to be transferred from one organization to another.

   a portable pension plan

3. (computing) Of software: able to be run on multiple hardware or operating systems.
   • 2012, Herbert Schildt, C++: A Beginner's Guide, Second Edition (page 6)

     How do Java and C# create cross-platform, portable programs, and why can't C++ do the same?

4. (computing) Of a program: able to be copied directly from one machine to another without the use of an installer.

Derived terms

Derived terms

• hand-portable
• man-portable
• portability

• portable art
• portableness

Translations

able to be carried or moved

• Arabic: مَحْمُول‎ (ar) (maḥmūl)
• Armenian: շարժական (hy) (šaržakan)
• Asturian: portátil
• Azerbaijani: daşınabilən, daşınan
• Belarusian: перано́сны (pjeranósny)
• Bulgarian: преносим (prenosim)
• Catalan: portàtil, portable (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 輕便的, 轻便的 (qīngbiàn de)

• Czech: přenosný (cs) m
• Danish: bærbar
• Dutch: draagbaar (nl)
• Esperanto: portebla
• Finnish: kannettava (fi), matka-, siirrettävä (fi)
• French: portable (fr), portatif (fr)
• Galician: portátil
• Georgian: გადატანადი (gadaṭanadi), გადასატანი (gadasaṭani), ტარებადი (ṭarebadi), სატარებელი (saṭarebeli), პორტატული (ṗorṭaṭuli), მოძრავი (moʒravi)
• German: portabel (de), tragbar (de)
• Greek: φορητός (el) (foritós)

  Ancient: ἀγώγιμος (agṓgimos), περιφορητός (periphorētós)

• Hungarian: hordozható (hu)
• Italian: portatile (it)
• Latin: circumlatitius
• Maori: tangara
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: bærbar, flyttbar, portabel

  Nynorsk: flyttbar, portabel

• Occitan: portable (oc)
• Plautdietsch: droagboa
• Polish: przenośny (pl)
• Portuguese: portátil (pt), portável
• Russian: переносно́й (ru) (perenosnój), портати́вный (ru) (portatívnyj)
• Serbo-Croatian: nosivo (sh), nosiv (sh)
• Slovak: prenosný
• Spanish: portátil (es), portable
• Thai: เคลื่อนที่ (th) (klʉ̂ʉan-tîi)
• Ukrainian: переносни́й (perenosnýj)
• Welsh: cludadwy (cy)

running on multiple systems

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: siirrettävä (fi)
• French: portable (fr)
• German: portabel (de)

• Norwegian: portabel
• Polish: przenośny (pl)
• Portuguese: portável
• Spanish: portable

See also

• hand-held
• transportable

Noun

portable (plural portables)

1. A portable building used for temporary purposes, particularly:
   1. Clipping of portable toilet.
   2. A trailer or other movable structure used for classes at a school.
2. (computing) Clipping of portable computer.
   • 1985, New Accountant (volumes 1-3, page lxvii)

     A few portables, particularly the small laphelds, go one step further and come with software built into the computer.

   • 1987, InfoWorld (volume 9, number 20, page 71)

     Compaq portables have grown lighter and more powerful since then. Their newest luggable, the Compaq Portable III, is six times more powerful and 10 pounds lighter than the original model.

3. (video games) A hand-held video gaming device.

Synonyms

• (facility for urination and defecation): See Thesaurus:bathroom

Translations

portable toilet; self-contained outhouse

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: bajamaja (fi)
• Norwegian: bæsj-and-carry m

temporary building that is portable, especially one located at a school

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: siirrettävä rakennus
• Norwegian: brakke c

hand-held electronic gaming device

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: kannettava pelilaite
• Norwegian: please add this translation if you can

Anagrams

• tropable

---

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin portabilis.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic) IPA^(key): /poɾˈta.blə/
• (Central) IPA^(key): /purˈta.blə/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /poɾˈta.ble/

Adjective

portable (masculine and feminine plural portables)

1. portable

   Synonym: portàtil

Related terms

• portar

Further reading

• “portable” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “portable” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
• “portable” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “portable” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

---

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin portābilis; synchronically analysable as porter +‎ -able.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

portable (plural portables)

1. portable

Related terms

• portatif

Derived terms

• téléphone portable
• ordinateur portable

Noun

La fonction principale des portables (1) est de téléphoner.

Travail sur un portable. (2)

portable m (plural portables)

1. a cell phone; Ellipsis of téléphone portable.
2. a laptop; Ellipsis of ordinateur portable

Synonyms

• (cell phone): mobile m, téléphone portable m, cellulaire m (Quebec), cell, téléphone mobile, téléphone cellulaire
• (laptop): ordinateur portable m

Further reading

• “portable” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

---

Occitan

Etymology

From Latin portabilis.

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Adjective

portable m (feminine singular portabla, masculine plural portables, feminine plural portablas)

1. portable

Related terms

• portar

Further reading

• Joan de Cantalausa (2006) Diccionari general occitan a partir dels parlars lengadocians, 2 edition, →ISBN, page 769.

---

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Medieval Latin portabilis; equivalent to portar +‎ -able.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /poɾˈtable/, [poɾˈt̪a.β̞le]
• Rhymes: -able

Adjective

portable (plural portables)

1. portable

   Synonym: portátil

Derived terms

• portabilidad

Further reading

• “portable” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.