Fordable

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈfɔːdəb(ə)l/

Definitions

1. Shallow or calm enough to be crossed by walking or driving through the water
2. Passable enough to allow for crossing by humans or vehicles without significant obstruction from water
3. Capable of being traversed safely, especially by foot or vehicle, when water levels are low

Etymology: Crossing a river on foot is one of the oldest problems in travel, and "ford" is the English answer. The Old English "ford" traces back through Proto-Germanic "furduz" to a Proto-Indo-European root, "*per-", meaning something like "to go across," which also gave English words for passage and passing. A ford was simply a place where the water was low enough to walk or drive through, so the word named the crossing itself rather than the river. "Fordable" is a plain, transparent formation: "ford" plus the suffix "-able," meaning "capable of being." The suffix came into English through Old French "-able," descended from Latin "-abilis" and "-bilis," which attached to verbs to mean "able to be done." Put together, a fordable river is one you are able to get across by wading or driving through, with no boat or bridge needed.