Tractabilities

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The quality of being easily managed or controlled in various contexts
2. The capability of being influenced or guided in different situations
3. A characteristic reflecting adaptability and responsiveness to change in behavior or opinion

Etymology: "Tractabilities" is simply the plural of "tractability", so it is worth tracing the noun itself. The root is the Latin verb "trahere", meaning "to draw" or "to pull", which gave Latin "tractare", "to handle or drag about" and the adjective "tractabilis", "that can be handled". English took the idea through Middle English "tractable", and the noun "tractability" was formed by adding the suffix "-ity" to that adjective, following the Latin "tractābilitās". The most striking thing here is the literal sense underneath. A tractable thing was once one that could be physically handled or dragged along, and the modern sense of being easily managed or persuaded grew out of that tactile image of something that yields to the hand. Speakers of the plural usually mean different kinds of manageability, such as the degrees to which various problems, materials or people can be controlled.

Synonyms: manageability, compliance

Antonyms: intractability