Meaning of “eligible” in the English Dictionary

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"eligible" in English

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eligibleadjective

uk ​ /ˈel.ɪ.dʒə.bəl/ us ​ /ˈel.ə.dʒə.bəl/

C1 having the necessary qualities or satisfying the necessary conditions:

Are you eligible for early retirement/maternity leave?
You might be eligible for a grant.
Only people over 18 are eligible to vote.

› An eligible person is not married and is thought to be a suitable future marriage partner, especially because they are rich and attractive:

I can think of several eligible bachelors of my acquaintance.

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Thesaurus: synonyms and related words

eligibility
uk ​ /ˌel.ɪ.dʒəˈbɪl.ə.ti/ us ​ /ˌel.ə.dʒəˈbɪl.ə.t̬i/

›

I'll have to check her eligibility to take part.
The eligibility rules prevent under-18s being in the team.

(Definition of “eligible” from the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

"eligible" in American English

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eligibleadjective

us ​ /ˈel·ɪ·dʒə·bəl/

› having the necessary qualities or fulfilling the necessary conditions:

an eligible voter
You have to be employed six months to be eligible for medical benefits.

› If you refer to a man or a woman as eligible, you mean the man or woman is not married and is desirable as a marriage partner:

The magazine listed 50 of the world’s most eligible bachelors.
eligibility
noun [ U ] us ​ /ˌel·ə·dʒəˈbɪl·ət̬·i/

(Definition of “eligible” from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

"eligible" in Business English

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eligibleadjective

uk ​ /ˈelɪdʒəbl/ us ​

› allowed to do or receive something because you satisfy certain conditions:

eligible citizens/customers/employees The company will offer its 104,000 eligible employees a stock option scheme this year.
eligible to do sth Nearly two-thirds of the company's current employees will be eligible to retire within five years.
Of 9,475 students, 1,323 were eligible for a scholarship.

(Definition of “eligible” from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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eligible

I should like here to clarify how important it is that we have added three additional forms of eligible costs: indirect costs, flat-rate costs and lump sums.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
I regret, however, that the proposal to increase cofinancing rates in the area of additional data collection, management and use to 60% of eligible expenditure has not been adopted.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
If so, which criteria will be used to fix the level of such aid and determine which countries will be eligible?
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
In a first stage, we will present legislation to standardise eligible derivatives contracts, putting them through central counterparty clearing that is properly regulated and supervised.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
When the scheme was introduced the list of eligible products took account of the market situation, availability and the type of product actually supplied to schools at the time.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
Many organisations, individuals, groups, associations and communities that are eligible for structural funds fail to receive their fair share because of the over-complexity of the application process.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
In order to protect works of art against illegal copying, eligible parties must be given the opportunity to use technical protection.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
There has also been a sharp increase in the number of farmers eligible for direct payments, even though such payments were not their idea.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
Moreover, actions aimed at strengthening centres' institutional capacities, in particular by developing their ability to mobilise funds, were explicitly eligible for financing in 2001 and 2002.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
Payments are reduced in proportion to the extent to which the cultivated areas exceed the areas dedicated to crops eligible for support.
From Europarl Parallel Corpus - English
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