employability

IPA/ɪmˌplɔɪəˈbɪləti/
IPA/ɪmˌplɔɪəˈbɪləti/

employability — noun

1. how easy or likely it is for someone to find a paid job, based on the skills, ex

1.nounB2
Definition

how easy or likely it is for someone to find a paid job, based on the skills, experience, and personal qualities they have

Example

Gabriel took a short course in data analysis to improve his employability after college.

collocation: improve employability

The programme focuses on developing students' employability through real work placements.

collocation: develop employability

Common collocations
  • improve employability
  • boost employability
  • develop employability
  • enhance employability
  • increase employability
  • employability skills
  • employability programme
  • employability training
  • graduate employability
  • long-term employability
Synonyms
  • job readiness

    more informal and practical; focuses on being prepared for a specific role

  • career readiness

    broader; includes long-term professional growth and soft skills

  • marketability

    emphasises how attractive a candidate appears to employers

  • qualifications

    narrower; refers only to formal credentials and certifications

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

employability + of + noun phrase

possessive + employability

Usage Note

Often appears in discussions about education policy, career counselling, and labour market trends. Commonly paired with verbs such as 'improve', 'boost', 'develop', 'enhance', and 'increase'. Uncountable — do not use with 'an' or in plural form.

Common Mistakes

She has a high employability.
She has strong employability.
'employability' is uncountable; use 'strong', 'good', or 'high' as a modifier without 'a'.
The government aims to increase employment.' (when meaning employability)
The government aims to increase employability through training programmes.
'employment' means having a job; 'employability' means being qualified to get one.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

While all four terms relate to a person's ability to get work, they differ in scope and focus. 'Job readiness' is the most practical and short-term — it asks whether someone can start a specific role today, often after a training course. 'Career readiness' is broader, covering long-term professional growth, adaptability, and soft skills such as leadership and communication. 'Marketability' views the person as a product: how appealing their combination of skills and experience looks to multiple employers. 'Qualifications' is the narrowest, referring only to formal degrees, diplomas, and certificates. For example, a candidate may have excellent qualifications and strong marketability but lack the practical communication skills that job readiness implies — showing that no single word covers all aspects of employability.

job readinesscareer readinessmarketability ↗qualifications ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • employability skills
  • employability programme
  • employability training
  • graduate employability
  • youth employability

Adverbs

  • highly employable

Phrases

  • level of employability
  • lack of employability

Prepositions

  • employability of

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Formed within English by combining 'employ' (from Old French 'emploiier', meaning 'to make use of', which traces back to Latin 'implicare' — 'to involve or engage') with the suffix '-ability' (from Latin '-abilitas', indicating capacity or fitness). The word 'employability' first appeared in the mid-20th century, when labour markets and educators began focusing on whether jobseekers possessed the transferable skills that employers needed — moving the concept beyond simply 'being employed' to 'being qualified to become employed'.