affordance
Suggested use signal
An affordance is a feature of an object or environment that suggests how it can be used.
A door handle affords pulling; a flat plate affords pushing.
The term comes from design theory, where good affordances make objects intuitive: The button's raised surface is an affordance that invites pressing.
Digital interfaces rely on visual affordances—shadows suggesting clickability, sliders suggesting dragging.
Poor affordances lead to user confusion; good ones go unnoticed.
Meaning-bearing form
- mappingDiagram of correspondences
- constraintLimiting condition or rule
- feedbackReturned response data
- visibilityRange of clear sight
discoverability · learnability · usability · ergonomics · user-centered · accessibility · interface · intuitiveness
Able to be held
- reachableAble to be contacted
- sittableFit to occupy
- climbableAble to be ascended
- walkableAble to travel afoot
throwable · liftable · pushable · pullable · touchable · holdable · carryable · supportive
Range of clear sight
- detectabilityCapacity to be noticed
- cueTrigger for action
- signalMessage-conveying cue
- indicatorSign revealing status
clue · hint · salience · perceptibility · recognition · discoverability · obviousness · prominence
State of being achievable
- opportunityFavorable circumstance for advancement
- capabilityPower to accomplish tasks
- capacityMaximum amount containable
- actionProcess of doing
enablement · invitation · suggestion · permit · allow · support · facilitate · offer
signifier
Meaning-bearing form
- mappingDiagram of correspondences
- constraintLimiting condition or rule
- feedbackReturned response data
visibility · discoverability · learnability · usability · ergonomics · user-centered · accessibility · interface · intuitiveness · simplicity
graspable
Able to be held
walkable · throwable · liftable · pushable · pullable · touchable · holdable · carryable · supportive · surface
visibility
Range of clear sight
- detectabilityCapacity to be noticed
- cueTrigger for action
- signalMessage-conveying cue
indicator · clue · hint · salience · perceptibility · recognition · discoverability · obviousness · prominence · legibility
possibility
State of being achievable
- opportunityFavorable circumstance for advancement
- capabilityPower to accomplish tasks
- capacityMaximum amount containable
action · enablement · invitation · suggestion · permit · allow · support · facilitate · offer · provide
click
Brief sharp noise
- dragResistance through fluid
- touchPerceiving through physical contact
- gestureCommunicative body movement
swipe · scroll · press · hover · tap · grip · grasp · push · pull · slide
- cognitionthinking, reasoning, thought, cognition, remembering
- design principlescontrast, proportion, symmetry, balance, composition
- ergonomic designergonomics, usability, human factors, intuitive design, universal design
- interfacesGUI, CLI, API, click, mouse
- UI elementsbutton, menu, buttons, menus, icon
- designdesign principles, functionality, emphasis, unity, graphic design
affordanceconstraint
Limiting condition or rule
barrier · limitation · restriction · impediment · hindrance