Applicables

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Capable of being applied; relevant or appropriate to a particular situation; suitable or fitting for a given purpose
2. Having the quality of being usable or pertinent; able to be put into practice or used effectively; connected to the matter at hand
3. Fit to be employed in specific contexts; bearing relevance or significance; adaptable to particular conditions or uses

Etymology: "Applicable" is the adjective form of "apply," and the word itself is a straightforward formation: it comes from the Late Latin "applicabilis," meaning "that can be attached or joined to," built from "applicare" (to attach to, apply) plus the suffix "-abilis," which signals capability, as in "capable of being applied." The English adjective is formed the same way, with the suffix "-able" added to "apply," which was borrowed from Old French "aplier" and ultimately from Latin "applicare." The word's core sense is physical before it is abstract. "Applicare" literally meant to fasten or join one thing to another, and English "apply" first carried that sense of laying one thing against another before it came to mean putting a rule, method, or remedy to use. "Applicable," meaning suitable for a particular purpose or case, follows that shift: a rule is applicable when it can be attached to a given situation.

Synonyms: relevant, pertinent, appropriate, suitable

Antonyms: irrelevant, inapplicable, unsuitable