What does explainable mean?
"Explainable" is an adjective describing something that can be explained or accounted for — a phenomenon, decision, or result whose causes or reasoning can be made clear. A strange noise in the engine might be explainable by a loose belt; a company's losses might be explainable by market conditions. The word carries a reassuring connotation: to call something explainable is to strip it of mystery and suggest that order underlies apparent chaos. In recent years the adjective has taken on a prominent technical life in computing, where "explainable AI" refers to artificial-intelligence systems designed so that humans can understand how they reach their conclusions — an increasingly important concern as algorithms influence lending, hiring, and medical care. Derived from the verb "explain," which traces back through Old French to the Latin explanare, meaning "to make plain or flat," the word shares deep roots with "plain," "planation," and "explanation." Its closest formal synonym, "explicable," is somewhat rarer and more literary.
Capable of being explained, justified, or accounted for.
"The discrepancy in the accounts proved perfectly explainable once the missing receipts surfaced."
Often used with adverbs of degree such as "easily," "readily," or "entirely," as in "readily explainable."
(Of an AI system or model) Designed so that its internal reasoning and outputs can be interpreted and understood by humans.
"Hospitals prefer explainable models so doctors can see why an algorithm flagged a scan."
Almost always encountered in the fixed phrase "explainable AI," often abbreviated XAI.
The same Latin root that gives us "plain" (as in clear) hides inside "explainable" — to explain something is literally to make it plain.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of explainable
"Explainable" is formed from the verb "explain" plus the adjectival suffix "-able." The verb derives from the Latin explanare, meaning "to flatten, make level, or make plain," formed from ex- ("out") and planus ("flat, plain"). The word entered English via Anglo-Norman and Old French explainer, with the derived adjective emerging later. It thus shares its origin with words such as "explanation," "explicable," "plan," and ultimately "plain" itself.
Related word forms
How explainable is actually used
"Explainable" is slightly less formal and more common in modern usage than its synonym "explicable." It has gained a specialized technical meaning in computing, where "explainable AI" (XAI) has become a standard term for machine-learning systems whose reasoning can be inspected and understood.
Easily confused with explainable
"Explicable" is the more formal, Latinate term for something that can be explained, while "explainable" is the plainer everyday equivalent.