Specifiable

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Able to be clearly described or identified in detail
2. Capable of having its characteristics or parameters clearly set or determined
3. Subject to precise definition or explicit description

Etymology: "Specifiable" is simply "specify" with the suffix "-able" attached, meaning "capable of being specified" or "capable of definition." The verb "specify" came into English from Latin "specificare," built from "species" (kind or appearance) and "facere" (to make), so it literally means "to make into a kind" or to make something particular and identifiable. The ending is the more interesting part. The suffix "-able" traces back through Old French "-able" to Latin "-abilis," which was used to form adjectives meaning "able to be" something. Latin "-bilis" and "-ābilis" were already attached to verb stems, and English borrowed this pattern so freely that it became one of the most productive suffixes in the language, allowing speakers to create new adjectives such as "specifiable" whenever they needed one.

Synonyms: definable, determinable, identifiable

Antonyms: indefinable, vague