serviceable

Definition

Functional and repairable; the sad reality of products designed before planned obsolescence was invented. Something that can actually be fixed instead of landfilled.

Example Usage

The old refrigerator is still serviceable after 20 years, unlike modern ones.

Source: Product design and manufacturing terminology

Related Terms

Beginner

stretch goal

An ambitious target unlikely to be achieved, set by managers who won't face consequences for the inevitable failure but will claim credit if it somehow succeeds.

💼 Corporate / Business

Beginner

validate

To verify or confirm the accuracy, legitimacy, or necessity of something—the bureaucratic equivalent of a nod, but with significantly more documentation and legal standing.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

subgroup

A smaller team within a larger organization or mathematical set that operates semi-autonomously while still following the parent group's rules. Think of it as a squad within the squad.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

consignment

A business arrangement where goods are shipped to a retailer or seller who only pays after the items actually sell—basically "try before you buy" for businesses. It's the commercial equivalent of letting your friend borrow your clothes with the understanding they'll pay you if they decide to keep them. Popular in retail and logistics, it shifts inventory risk from buyer to seller in a delightfully anxiety-inducing way.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

incentivize

The corporate verb for bribing people with rewards to do what you want, because "motivate" sounded too human and "bribe" too honest. It's the art of dangling carrots—usually cash, equity, or pizza parties—to make employees enthusiastic about objectives they'd otherwise ignore. Management loves this word because it makes manipulation sound like science.

💼 Corporate / Business

Intermediate

variation

A change or deviation from the standard, baseline, or expected outcome; the business world's way of saying 'something didn't go according to plan, and we need to investigate why.'

💼 Corporate / Business

Translate This Term

See “serviceable” in Corporate Speak, Gen-Z Slang, Pirate Speak, and more.

Try the Translator

Share This Term

Post on X Share on Facebook Share on LinkedIn

Discover a Term

Beginner

Surge

A rapid and dramatic increase in troop deployment to an area, deployed when normal operations aren't working and time is...