tenable
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About Our Definitions: All forms of a word (noun, verb, etc.) are now displayed on one page.ten·a·ble
adjective \ˈte-nə-bəl\Definition of TENABLE
: capable of being held, maintained, or defended : defensible, reasonable
— ten·a·bil·i·ty \ˌte-nə-ˈbi-lə-tē\ noun
— ten·a·ble·ness noun
— ten·a·bly \ˈte-nə-blē\ adverb
See Examples of TENABLE
- <the soldiers' encampment on the open plain was not tenable, so they retreated to higher ground>
- <the tenable theory that a giant meteor strike set off a chain of events resulting in the demise of the dinosaurs>
Origin of TENABLE
Middle French, from Old French, from tenir to hold, from Latin tenēre — more at thin
First Known Use: 1579
Related to TENABLE
- Synonyms
- defendable, defensible
- Antonyms
- indefensible, untenable
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