Articulate

Borrowing from la articulÄtus.

Full definition of articulate

clear, effective
especially, speaking in a clear or effective manner
Sheâ€™s a bright, articulate young woman.
able to bend or hinge at certain points or intervals
The robot arm was articulate in two directions.
articulate animals or plants
Expressed in articles or in separate items or particulars.
(obsolete, of sound) Related to human speech, as distinct from the vocalisation of animals.

1728, James Knapton and John Knapton, Cyclopaedia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences, page 146:Brutes cannot form articulate Sounds, cannot articulate the Sounds of the Voice, excepting some few Birds, as the Parrot, Pye, &c.

(plural articulates)

From the adjective.

To make clear or effective.
To speak clearly; to enunciate.I wish heâ€™d articulate his words more clearly.
To explain; to put into words; to make something specific.I like this painting, but I canâ€™t articulate why.
To bend or hinge something at intervals, or to allow or build something so that it can bend.an articulated bus
(music) to attack a note, as by tonguing, slurring, bowing, etc.Articulate that passage heavily.
(anatomy) to form a joint or connect by jointsThe lower jaw articulates with the skull at the temporomandibular joint.
(obsolete) To treat or make terms.