Portative

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Small and easily carried or transported, especially referring to a portable organ or similar musical instrument
2. Compact in design and suitable for easy transportation or movement, often used in the context of musical devices that are designed to be mobile
3. Designed to be lightweight and movable, typically associated with instruments that can be easily carried for performance

Etymology: "Portative" entered English from Middle French "portatif," which is built from "port," meaning to carry, plus the suffix "-ative," which forms adjectives meaning "tending to" or "having the nature of" an action. The result is a word meaning, literally, "inclined to be carried." The sense that interests musicians is the oldest one. In English, the word was first used of a small, portable pipe organ, one light enough to be carried or moved from place to place rather than fixed in a church or hall. That mobility is why the word still turns up in discussions of early keyboard instruments and in the descriptions of compact musical devices generally. The broader sense of anything compact and easily moved developed from that original application.

Synonyms: portable, carryable, movable

Antonyms: immobile, fixed