Extendability

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The attribute that enables something to be made larger or more expansive
2. The quality of being able to increase in size or scope beyond the original limits
3. The ability of an object or concept to be enlarged or prolonged in range or duration

Etymology: "Extendability" is a plain English construction: the verb "extend" with the suffix "-ability" attached. That suffix comes from Latin "-abilitas," the noun form of adjectives ending in "-abilis," meaning "able to be done." Put together, the word describes the quality of being able to be extended, whether a physical length, a contract, or a system. The suffix did most of the work in English. Words like "readability" and "capability" follow the same pattern, so once speakers had "extendable," it was a short step to form the noun. The result is a word that needs no special history: its meaning is simply the sum of its parts, and it is built the way English has built countless abstract nouns from Latin-derived suffixes.

Synonyms: expandability, flexibility

Antonyms: rigidity