mobility

English

From Middle French mobilité, and its source, Latin mōbilitās (“mobility”).

mobility (countable and uncountable, plural mobilities)

The ability to move; capacity for movement. [from 15th c.]
Synonym: mobileness
- 2015, Hadley Freeman, The Guardian, 15 June:
  I find the enduring existence of high heels both a frustrating mystery and a testament to the triumph of women’s neuroses over their mobility.
- 2022 December 14, David Turner, “The Edwardian Christmas getaway...”, in RAIL, number 972, page 32:
  In the late 19th and early 20th century, the festive season was also a period of great mobility before, during and after Christmas Day. But the railways kept working.
(now chiefly literary) A tendency to sudden change; mutability, changeableness. [from 16th c.]
(military) The ability of a military unit to move or be transported to a new position. [from 18th c.]
(chiefly physics) The degree to which particles of a liquid or gas are in movement. [from 19th c.]
(chiefly sociology) People's ability to move between different social levels or professional occupations. [from 19th c.]
- 2020 July 28, Thomas B. Edsall, “Trump Is Trying to Bend Reality to His Will”, in New York Times‎:
  The difficulty of rising up the economic ladder is reflected in the decline in mobility in the United States. […] The frustration over the lack of mobility is particularly acute for those without college degrees.

terms derived from mobility (noun)

terms related to mobility (noun)

English terms derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *mew-‎ (0 c, 56 e)

ability to move

ability of a military unit to move or be transported to a new position

ease of movement between social levels