Killable

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈkɪl.ə.bəl/

Definitions

1. Subject to death through an act that causes fatal harm
2. Possible to cause death to, under certain conditions or actions
3. Able to be destroyed or brought to death by an external force

Etymology: Killable is a plain formation: the verb "kill" plus the suffix "-able," which means "capable of being" or "susceptible to" the action. The suffix has a longer ancestry than the verb it attaches to. It traces back through Latin "-abilis" and the Old French "-able" to a Latin form "-ābilis," which in turn grew from a Proto-Italic ending that carried the idea of being able to undergo something. English took up "-able" in the Middle English period and has used it ever since to build adjectives from verbs. The verb "kill" is the older piece of the puzzle and its origin is less certain. It is generally treated as a word of uncertain or obscure origin in English, so the story of "killable" rests mainly on the suffix. Once attached to "kill," the suffix produced a word meaning that a creature or person can be put to death by a deadly blow or act.