-ability
(Latin: suffix; expressing ability, capacity, fitness, or "that which may be easily handled or managed")
Just a few examples out of hundreds of words presented as the noun forms of -able; forming nouns of quality from, or corresponding to, adjectives in -able; the quality in an agent that makes an action possible. The suffix -ible has related meanings.
Something that is impossible to be known before it happens or which cannot be determined in advance: For anyone living in the far north, the unpredictabilities of the wind and weather are things that people learn to live with.
The quality of being changeable: Sometimes weather can be quite unpredictable and is known for its variability when sunshine quickly disappears and dark clouds, wind, and rain roll through and then sunshine again!
An instability of the vascular system: Vasolability is the weakness or imbalance of the blood vessels which conduct and circulate blood in a body.
venerable (adjective), more venerable, most venerable
1. Regarding a person who is highly respected by virtue of age, dignity, character, or position: A venerable member of Congress is an individual who is worthy of being well received and highly thought of.
2. Worthy of reverence, especially by religious or historical association: There were many venerable and antiquated relics to be seen in the church around the corner.
3. Referring to places, buildings, etc.; hallowed by religious, historic, or other lofty associations: On the tour of the abbey, June admired the venerable halls which were full of bygone days and brimming with tales of fate.
4. Venerable, abbreviated, Ven. or V., in the Roman Catholic Church and used as a form of address for an individual who has reached the first stage of canonization: Bishop Fulton J. Sheen and Princess Louise of France are two examples of Venerables.
5. Pertaining to a form of address for an archdeacon in the Anglican Church or the Episcopal Church: The venerable ecclesiastical dignitary had been assigned the lowest degrees of acknowledgement for sanctitude.
6. Impressive or interesting because of age, antique appearance, etc.: The old and venerable grandfather clock stood at a special spot in the living room.
2. Worthy of reverence, especially by religious or historical association: There were many venerable and antiquated relics to be seen in the church around the corner.
3. Referring to places, buildings, etc.; hallowed by religious, historic, or other lofty associations: On the tour of the abbey, June admired the venerable halls which were full of bygone days and brimming with tales of fate.
4. Venerable, abbreviated, Ven. or V., in the Roman Catholic Church and used as a form of address for an individual who has reached the first stage of canonization: Bishop Fulton J. Sheen and Princess Louise of France are two examples of Venerables.
5. Pertaining to a form of address for an archdeacon in the Anglican Church or the Episcopal Church: The venerable ecclesiastical dignitary had been assigned the lowest degrees of acknowledgement for sanctitude.
6. Impressive or interesting because of age, antique appearance, etc.: The old and venerable grandfather clock stood at a special spot in the living room.
There was a venerable oak tree in the family's garden.
7. Extremely old or obsolete or ancient: Thomas remembered that there was a venerable and timeworn house which had been taken down many, many years ago.
1. The ability to live; capable of normal growth and development: After the mother cat had her six kittens, Jane wondered about the viability of the last and tiniest one.
2. The quality of having a practical and plausible chance of success: The viability of Susan inviting all of her 15 friends to her birthday party depended on her parents allowing her to ask them.
3. The capacity of working well and favorably: The viability of the shop to survive depended on the number of people buying the items offered, keeping on top of the operating costs of the shop and personnel, and not making any debts.
2. The quality of having a practical and plausible chance of success: The viability of Susan inviting all of her 15 friends to her birthday party depended on her parents allowing her to ask them.
3. The capacity of working well and favorably: The viability of the shop to survive depended on the number of people buying the items offered, keeping on top of the operating costs of the shop and personnel, and not making any debts.
The property of a substance or material which can be changed into glass by the use of heat: The vitrifiability of certain liquid crystals have been proved to have various advantages in optical applications, in stability, in durability, among other assets.
vitrifiable (adjective) (not comparable)
Capable of being converted into glass by heat and fusion: Flint and alkaline salts are vitrifiable, or "vitrificable", which is the obsolete form of the term.
The quality of something which can be rescinded or declared legally unbinding: The violability of the reservation was possible, so James retracted the booking within the time limit allowed.
1. Susceptibility to injury or damage: In Greek mythology, Achilles' mother tried to make him impossible to be injured, hurt, or wounded by dipping him into the magical waters of the River Styx; however, the heel by which she held him made this vulnerability the cause of his death when an arrow hit him in his heel during a military battle.
2. The degree to which a population, species, ecosystem, agricultural system, or other biological entity is unable to cope with the adverse effects of climate changes: Throughout the three years of almost total draught, the vulnerability of producing enough vegetables and grains hit the farmers quite hard and bankruptcy was not uncommon.
2. The degree to which a population, species, ecosystem, agricultural system, or other biological entity is unable to cope with the adverse effects of climate changes: Throughout the three years of almost total draught, the vulnerability of producing enough vegetables and grains hit the farmers quite hard and bankruptcy was not uncommon.
In computer operations, a systematic examination of an information system or product: A vulnerability analysis is used to determine the competence of security measures, recognize security deficits, furnish data from which to predict the efficiency of proposed security measures, and verify the adequacy of such measures after effectuation.
A program that performs the diagnostic phase of an analysis, also known as a computer assessment: A vulnerability scanner analysis defines, identifies, and classifies the security holes (vulnerabilities) in a computer, server, network, or communications infrastructure.
In addition, a vulnerability scanner functions as an analysis which can forecast the effectiveness of proposed countermeasures, and evaluate how well they work after they are put into use.
A time frame within which defensive measures by the armed forces are reduced, compromised, or lacking: The window of vulnerability is used with reference to military defenses of strategic assets, and also by analogy in computer software to a "vulnerability" which is open to exploitation by hackers.
