definable

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /dɪˈfaɪnəbəl/ UK /dɪˈfaɪnəbəl/ See IPA manual

adj

Meanings

1

adj
able to be defined or precisely described

Happiness proved less definable than the philosophers had hoped.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · able to be defined or... describabledeterminablespecifiable explicable

Opposites

indefinableundefinablevague nebulous

Word family

Derived forms definablydefinability

Related forms define definition definite definitive

Etymology

From define (from Latin definire 'to limit, determine', from de- 'completely' + finire 'to bound', from finis 'end, limit') plus the suffix -able.

definire Latin finis Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# definable

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** dɪˈfaɪnəbəl
**IPA (UK):** dɪˈfaɪnəbəl

## Meanings
1. able to be defined or precisely described

## Examples
- Happiness proved less definable than the philosophers had hoped.

## Synonyms
- describable
- determinable
- specifiable
- explicable

## Antonyms
- indefinable
- undefinable
- vague
- nebulous

## Derived Forms
- definably
- definability

## Related Forms
- define
- definition
- definite
- definitive

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: definire
- Root: finis

## Etymology
From define (from Latin definire 'to limit, determine', from de- 'completely' + finire 'to bound', from finis 'end, limit') plus the suffix -able.

## AI Etymology
Definable comes from define (from Latin definire 'to limit, determine', from de- 'completely' + finire 'to bound', from finis 'end, limit') plus the suffix -able. The etymological trail includes Latin definire and Latin finis. As an adjective, definable describes what is able to be defined or precisely described. The same family is visible in derived forms such as definably and definability and related forms such as define, definition, definite, and definitive. The analysis is partly morphological, with the modern form built from the elements named in the history.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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