-able
English
Alternative forms
- -ible (not productive)
Etymology
- From Middle English, borrowed from Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis, from -a- or -i- + -bilis (“capable or worthy of being acted upon”), from Proto-Indo-European i-stem form *-dʰli- of *-dʰlom (“instrumental suffix”).
- Not closely related etymologically, though currently related semantically, to able.
- Displaced native Old English -bǣre (“bearing, making, worth”), from Proto-Germanic *bēriz; and -lic (“like, having the quality of”), from Proto-Germanic *-līkaz. Compare Dutch -baar, -lijk, German -bar, -lich.
Pronunciation
- Lua error in Module:parameters at line 290: Parameter 1 should be a valid language or etymology language code; the value "US" is not valid. See WT:LOL and WT:LOL/E. IPA(key): /ə.bl̩/
Suffix
-able
- An adjectival suffix; forms adjectives meaning:
- Able to be done; fit to be done.
- movable: able to be moved
- amendable: able to be amended
- breakable: liable to broken
- blamable: fit to be blamed
- salable: fit to be sold
- Relevant to or suitable to, in accordance with.
- fashionable: relevant to fashion
- seasonable: suitable to season
- Giving, or inclined to.
- pleasurable: giving pleasure
- peaceable: inclined to peace
- Subject to.
- reportable: subject to be reported
- taxable: subject to be taxed
- Due to be.
- payable: due to pay
- Able to be done; fit to be done.
Usage notes
- Originally used only on French and Latin words, like separable. Over time -able was added to stems of English verbs ending in -ate, such as educable. Finally, due to probable confusion with the word able, it was used to form adjectives from all sorts of verbs, nouns, and even verb phrases, such as kickable, get-at-able, and clubbable.
- While a terminal silent -e is usually dropped when adding a suffix beginning with a vowel, which is followed by -able, the -e is not dropped when adding -able if the root ends with a soft -ce and -ge, as in replaceable and changeable, so that these are not misinterpreted as hard ‘c’ or ‘g’ sounds. This same rule is used for -ous, as in courageous.
- As when adding the suffix -ed, a final consonant of a root should be doubled if the preceding vowel is short and (in British English) stressed.
- The form -ible has the same senses and pronunciation. The choice between the two is somewhat idiosyncratic, but in general, -ible is used in forms derived from Latin verbs of the second, third, and fourth conjugations, and in a few words whose roots end in a soft c or g, while -able is used in all other such words, particularly those formed from Latin verbs of the first conjugation and those that come from French or from Anglo-Saxon (Old English). Fowler's English Usage recommends using -ible for simplicity's sake in any word whose root ends in a soft c or g to avoid -eable (e.g., *changible rather than changeable), but this recommendation has generally not been followed.
- A number of adjectives in -able come from verbs that do not have direct objects, but that rather are construed with prepositions. In these cases, the preposition does not appear with the adjective in -able; hence, reliable (“fit to being relied on”), laughable (“suited for laughing at”), remarkable (“fit to be remarked upon”), and so on.
- Traditionally, verbs ending in -ate drop this suffix before adding -able; hence, communicable (“able to be communicated”), eradicable (“possible to eradicate”), implacable (“unable to be placated”), inimitable (“unable to imitated”), and so on, but relatable, because relate is re- + -late, not rel- + -ate. Logically one should therefore say rotable to mean "able to be rotated", but rotatable has become accepted.
- There are cases where a word with un- -able is much more common than one with just -able, such as unbreakable, unsinkable, and untouchable.
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
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Anagrams
Catalan
Etymology
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Pronunciation
Suffix
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Usage notes
This suffix is used for verbs of the first conjugation, which end in -ar and are the most common. For other verbs, the suffix is -ible.
Derived terms
French
Etymology
From Middle French -able, from Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis.
Pronunciation
Suffix
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Galician
Alternative forms
Etymology
Suffix
-able
Derived terms
Middle French
Etymology
From Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis.
Suffix
-able (plural -ables)
Descendants
- French: -able
Old French
Etymology
Suffix
-able (plural -ables)
- worthy of, deserving of
- honorer (“to honor”) + -able → honnorable (“honorable”)
- -ing, creating an effect, an influence
- forsener (“to become insane or enraged”) + -able → forsenable (“maddening”)
Descendants
Spanish
Etymology
From Old Spanish, from Latin -ābilis.
Pronunciation
Suffix
-able (plural -ables)
Derived terms
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms borrowed from Old French
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Latin
- English terms derived from Proto-Indo-European
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English lemmas
- English suffixes
- English adjective-forming suffixes
- English productive suffixes
- Catalan terms inherited from Latin
- Catalan terms derived from Latin
- Catalan terms with IPA pronunciation
- French terms inherited from Middle French
- French terms derived from Middle French
- French terms inherited from Old French
- French terms derived from Old French
- French terms inherited from Latin
- French terms derived from Latin
- French 1-syllable words
- French terms with IPA pronunciation
- French terms spelled with -
- Galician terms derived from Latin
- Galician lemmas
- Galician suffixes
- Middle French terms inherited from Old French
- Middle French terms derived from Old French
- Middle French terms inherited from Latin
- Middle French terms derived from Latin
- Middle French lemmas
- Middle French suffixes
- Old French terms inherited from Latin
- Old French terms derived from Latin
- Old French lemmas
- Old French suffixes
- Spanish terms inherited from Old Spanish
- Spanish terms derived from Old Spanish
- Spanish terms inherited from Latin
- Spanish terms derived from Latin
- Spanish 2-syllable words
- Spanish terms with IPA pronunciation
- Spanish lemmas
- Spanish suffixes