Acknowledgeable

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Capable of being recognized or accepted in a meaningful way
2. Pertaining to the ability to be admitted or validated as legitimate in a given context
3. Capable of being recognized as valid or true through identification or admission

Etymology: "Acknowledgeable" is a simple formation: the verb "acknowledge" with the suffix "-able" attached. The suffix comes through a long chain, from Latin "-bilis" and "-ābilis", which gave Old French "-able", which Middle English borrowed and turned into a productive English ending. Latin "-bilis" marked things that could be done, and the same ending appears in words like "readable" and "believable". The base verb "acknowledge" is itself a compound-style creation: it was formed in Middle English from "knowledge" with the prefix "a-" (in the sense of "in" or "on") and a verb-making element, and it came to mean "to recognize or admit" the status of something. Adding "-able" to it gives a word meaning that something can be recognized or accepted in a meaningful way.