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- pronunciation:
- s
steI
n
bl
- features:
- Word Parts
| part of speech: |
adjective |
| definition 1: |
capable of continuing or or being kept up over time.
Their small grocery store business was no longer sustainable after the big store opened across the street. |
| definition 2: |
of or related to a method of managing or using a resource so that the resource is never used up or forever damaged.
Sustainable farming usually involves rotating the crops so that the soil stays rich.
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| derivation: |
sustainability (adj.) |
The word sustainable
contains the following part:
-able, -ible, -ble
Latin
adjective-forming suffix
that means capable of being, doing, or undergoing
  More about this word part:
The suffix -able
, and its variants, is attached to Latin verb roots or English transitive verbs to form adjectives. (In a small set of cases, -able
is attached to a noun, e.g. knowledgeable and marriageable.) For spelling purposes, it is useful to know that -able
is more likely to be added to a whole English word (comparable, adorable
), while -ible
is more likely to follow a bound root (visible
, legible
). However,there are still many words which combine a root with -able
(capable
, inevitable
). The suffix -ity can be added to any adjective ending in -able
, -ible
, -ble
to produce a corresponding noun ending in -ability, -ibility, -bility (possible
+ -ity > possibility; irrevocable + -ity > irrevocability.)
Example words:
acceptable, accessible, adorable, amiable, audible, biodegradable, capable, convertible, dependable, disagreeable, disposable, divisible, eligible, flammable, flexible, illegible, impossible, inaudible, incapable, incomprehensible, inconceivable, incredible, incurable, indivisible, inevitable, invaluable, invincible, invisible, irreversible, legible, likable, lovable, movable, notable, perishable, portable, possible, sensible, usable, visible, washable, affordable, reliable, remarkable, approachable, durable, sustainable
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