Maintainabilities

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality or state of being able to be maintained effectively over time
2. The capacity to uphold functionality and performance without degradation or excessive effort
3. Referring to the ease with which a system or process can be preserved and sustained in optimal condition

Etymology: "Maintainabilities" is simply the plural of "maintainability," which describes how easily something can be kept in working order. The noun is built from "maintain" with the suffix "-ability," a combination that English uses to turn verbs into nouns of capacity, as in "readability" or "flexibility." The base verb "maintain" came into English through Middle French "maintenir," which descends from Latin "manutenere," meaning to hold or keep in hand. The suffix behind "-ability" passed through Latin "-abilitas," then Middle French "-abilite," and was adopted into Middle English as "-ablete" before settling into the modern form. Since "maintainability" is a recent formation, the plural is mostly used in technical writing about software and engineering systems, where teams compare the upkeep demands of several designs at once.