Confinable

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Able to be contained within set parameters or limits
2. Suitable for being restrained within specified boundaries or confines
3. Capable of being restricted or enclosed within certain boundaries or limits

Etymology: "Confinable" is a plain formation: the verb "confine" with the suffix "-able," meaning "capable of being confined." The verb "confine" came into English from Old French "confiner," meaning to border on or to bound, which in turn came from the Latin "confinis," "bordering on," built from "com-" (together) and "finis" (boundary, end). So the core idea is that something is bounded or held within limits. The suffix "-able," which passes through Old French from Latin "-abilis," turns a verb into an adjective meaning that the action can be performed on the thing described. Attaching it to "confine" gives a word for anything that can be shut in, kept within bounds, or restrained. The sense of restraint in the current meaning follows naturally from the older sense of confinement by a border.

Synonyms: restrictable, limitless

Antonyms: unconfined, unrestricted