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Why do we ask if a person is "comfortable", rather than "comforted"? Seems to me that once a person is cozy enough to find themself in a state of comfort, they should not be described as "comfortable", as that implies a *potential for comfort and takes no note of the fact that the comforting has already been accomplished.
are there other -able words that fall into this category?
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Carpal Tunnel
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Arguable if they fit:equable,curable,durable,habitable,manageable,passable...
As you say, the "able" part looks to the future. In "comfortable" it does not seem to look to the future.
Hey, I just remembered "Miserable". The "able" here does not look to future!
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good one, dr bill! miserable appears to be quite similar. i suppose we should by rights call ourselves miseried when in such a state, rather than miserable. then again, perhaps it's a nod to the old "things could be worse" axiom.
how intriguing that each of these words describes an emotional or physical state... does two make a pattern? are there more?
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Carpal Tunnel
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>each of these words describes an emotional or physical state
well, there are two meanings usually given for -able/-ible; one relates to a specific action, the other to a specified state. there are other state-ables, such as valuable, horrible.... but it must be said that these soon overlap with actions: honorable, dependable, delectable.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Actions: unalienable, malleable, illegible, indecipherable, and inscrutable
Constant state (inexorable, unreliable, and deplorable) = gullible. Also, able is a state.
(How does table fit into this mix? And cable? And ladle? A ladle lades out something, I suppose... But a table doesn't tabe anything... And a cable doesn't cabe anything? My mind's now quite addled, but that's another suffix.)
Intolerably disabled,
DubDub
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enthusiast
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enthusiast
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Often in this Board I have the feeling that there are discussions based upon the fact that English speakers barely 'feel' latin roots in their words.
Here, to me ALL able -words and ible -words are similar, and expressing the "possibility of being something" . I mean,
honorable= which can be honored... and so on..
horrible, also, I feel that probably there is a latin verb similar to "to horror"= to look at with horror
so that horrible to me is something you can look at with horror..
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Whitty wrote: Formidable question.
...
...yet not unfathomable
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Carpal Tunnel
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And the crucible...
What test would there be for deciding between "ible" and "able" when stumped about a spelling? Is there some fine point of distinction between the two suffixes?
WW
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