Wiktionary

-able

See also: able

English edit

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

From Middle English -able, 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 -endlīc.

Pronunciation edit

  • (US) IPA(key): /ə.bl̩/
  • Audio (Southern England)(file)

Suffix edit

-able

  1. An adjectival suffix; forms adjectives meaning:
    1. 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
    2. Relevant to or suitable to, in accordance with.
      fashionable: relevant to fashion
      seasonable: suitable to season
    3. Giving, or inclined to.
      pleasurable: giving pleasure
      peaceable: inclined to peace
    4. Subject to.
      reportable: subject to be reported
      taxable: subject to be taxed
    5. Due to be.
      payable: due to be paid

Usage notes edit

  • Originally appeared 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 hittable.
  • A terminal silent -e is often dropped when adding -able, but for roots ending with a soft -ce or -ge, such as replaceable and changeable, the -e is kept so that these are not misinterpreted as hard ‘c’ or ‘g’ sounds. Similar spelling patterns apply to some other suffixes beginning with a vowel, such as -ous in famous vs. courageous.
  • The final consonant of a root is doubled in the same contexts as when adding the suffix -ed. In general, this means doubling occurs when the preceding vowel is short and stressed (as in winnable) but not when it is long (as in obtainable) or unstressed (as in openable). In British English, a final L is typically doubled after a short vowel regardless of whether the vowel is stressed or unstressed (as in compellable, modellable). In American English, final L typically follows the same rules as other consonants (as in compellable, modelable). These are the general trends, but there is some variation within British and American English between these two methods of doubling final L.
  • The form -ible usually has the same senses and pronunciation, though sometimes equivalent terms have diverged in meaning: compare suggestable (“capable of being suggested”) with suggestible (“susceptible to influence by suggestion”). 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 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 be 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 edit

English terms suffixed with -able

Related terms edit

Translations edit

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Anagrams edit

Asturian edit

Etymology edit

From Latin -ābilis.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /ˈable/, [ˈa.β̞le]

Suffix edit

-able (epicene, adjective-forming suffix, plural -ables)

  1. -able

Derived terms edit

Asturian terms suffixed with -able

Catalan edit

Etymology edit

From Latin -ābilis.

Pronunciation edit

Suffix edit

-able m or f (adjective-forming suffix, masculine and feminine plural -ables)

  1. -able

Usage notes edit

  • 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 edit

Catalan terms suffixed with -able

French edit

Etymology edit

Inherited from Middle French -able, from Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis.

Pronunciation edit

Suffix edit

-able (plural -ables)

  1. -able

Derived terms edit

French terms suffixed with -able

Galician edit

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

From Latin -ābilis.

Suffix edit

-able m or f (adjective-forming suffix, plural -ables)

  1. -able

Derived terms edit

From

Galician terms suffixed with -able

.

Middle English edit

Alternative forms edit

Etymology edit

Borrowed from Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /-ˈaːbəl/, /-ˈaːblə/

Suffix edit

-able

  1. Forming adjectives denoting ability, relevance or inclination; -able.

Derived terms edit

Middle English terms suffixed with -able

Descendants edit

  • English: -able
  • Scots: -able

References edit

Middle French edit

Etymology edit

From Old French -able, from Latin -ābilis.

Suffix edit

-able (plural -ables)

  1. -able

Descendants edit

Norwegian Bokmål edit

Alternative forms edit

Pronunciation edit

Suffix edit

-able

  1. singular definite & plural form of -abel

Anagrams edit

Old French edit

Etymology edit

From Latin -ābilis.

Suffix edit

-able (plural -ables)

  1. worthy of, deserving of
    ‎honorer (“to honor”) + ‎-able → ‎honnorable (“honorable”)
  2. -ing, creating an effect, an influence
    ‎forsener (“to become insane or enraged”) + ‎-able → ‎forsenable (“maddening”)

Descendants edit

References edit

http://zeus.atilf.fr/scripts/dmfX.exe?IDF=dmfXaabb;ISIS=isis_dmfL.txt;s=s14033bb8;XMODE=STELLa

Spanish edit

Etymology edit

Inherited from Old Spanish, from Latin -ābilis.

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /ˈable/ [ˈa.β̞le]
  • Rhymes: -able
  • Syllabification: -a‧ble

Suffix edit

-able m or f (adjective-forming suffix, masculine and feminine plural -ables)

  1. -able

Derived terms edit

Spanish terms suffixed with -able

Further reading edit

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