Re: -able
| From: | caeruleancentaur <caeruleancentaur@...> |
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| Date: | Monday, April 14, 2008, 11:04 |
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>Benct Philip Jonsson <bpj@...> wrote:
>...the adjective _able_ comes from _habilis_ 'manageable,
>handy, apt' derived from _habére_ 'to have, to hold'.
From the PIE root *gha/ebh (according to Pokorny), meaning to give or
receive. Suffix -ê- results in the Latin word. Prefixed by de-
English gets "debt" words.
Senjecas forms these words by palatalizing the stem consonant. But the
resulting word must be passive: mhêna, love; mhênyis, lovable, able to
be loved. Some -able words in English are not passive. Unfortunately,
none come to mind at the moment. Then there is "knowledgeable" which
is a weird formation.
Charlie