Intelligibility is measured by proportion of words heard correctly, not by perceived quality

Evidence

The %ALcons is related to intelligibility as follows. If: %ALcons is less than 10%, the intelligibility will be very good; %ALcons is between 10% and 15%, the intelligibility will be acceptable; %ALcons is greater than 15%, the intelligibility will be poor. — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2465 (#expands, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Hearing-impaired listeners equate speech intelligibility with overall sound quality. — , Toole, Floyd E - Sound reproduction-…, 1437; Natural-sounding speech can still be poorly intelligible; Speech intelligibility and naturalness are distinct perceptual dimensions that do not track each other — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2398 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Percentage of lost consonants maps directly to intelligibility quality thresholds #expands (0.85) — David M. Howard, Jamie Angus, Acoustics and Psychoacoustics, 2465