'transportability' originates from Latin via Old French and Middle English: from Latin 'transportare' composed of 'trans-' meaning 'across' and 'portare' meaning 'to carry', combined with the English suffix '-ability' indicating 'capacity or fitness'.

'transportability' developed from Latin 'transportare' → Medieval Latin 'transportabilis'/'transportabilitas' → Middle English forms such as 'transportabilite', and eventually became the modern English 'transportability'.

Initially, it referred to the capacity to be carried across or transported; over time it retained that core sense and is now used generally for the quality of being able to be moved or conveyed.