Compatible

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /kəmˈpæt.ə.bəl/

Definitions

1. Able to exist or work together without conflict or problems
2. Capable of being used or operated together without any conflicts or adverse effects
3. Capable of living or working in harmony without causing disagreements or issues ; able to be used together effectively without causing malfunctions or contradictions

Etymology: The most surprising thing about "compatible" is that its earliest sense had nothing to do with getting along. Medieval Latin writers used "compatibilis" in the context of church law, to describe a benefice, a paid church post, that could be held together with another one. Two offices could be "compatible" in the sense that a single holder could legitimately keep both. The Latin root behind it is "compati," meaning "to suffer with," built from "com-" ("together") and "pati" ("to suffer"), the same root that gives English "passion." Late Latin used "compati" for sharing someone's pain or hardship, and the sense of "bearing" or "tolerating" alongside something else led to the idea of two things being able to exist side by side. The word came into English in Middle English, borrowed through Anglo-Norman, the French variety used in England after 1066. Its meaning then shifted gradually from the legal sense of things that could be held together toward the broader modern idea of things that can work or exist together, as in compatible software or compatible personalities.

Synonyms: fitting, suitable, harmonious, consistent, agreeable

Antonyms: incompatible, conflicting, discordant