Countabilities

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The various forms and instances of accountability that can be measured or assessed
2. The multiple aspects or types of responsibility that can be quantified in a given context
3. Different manifestations of obligation that are able to be evaluated or counted in terms of significance

Etymology: "Countability" is formed from "count" and the suffix "-ability," which is a common English pattern for turning verbs into adjectives or nouns of capacity, as in "readability" or "portability." The suffix itself came into English through Middle French "-abilité," which in turn descends from Latin "-abilitas," a noun-forming ending that expresses being able to be acted upon. "Count" is the older base, reaching English through Anglo-Norman "counter" from Latin "computare," meaning to reckon or sum up, which is also the source of "compute." The plural "countabilities" is the plural of "countability," so it refers to multiple instances or forms of that quality. Its meaning, the various forms of accountability that can be measured or assessed, follows from the original sense of countable: capable of being counted or numbered.