Where does “merchantable” come from?
Merchantable comes from Middle English -able, Old French -able, and Latin -abilis, a suffix attached to Latin mercor (to trade), derived from Latin merx (goods or wares).
merchantable (English): Fit for the market, i.e. suitable for selling for...
Definitions
- Fit for the market, i.e. suitable for selling for...
Ancestry of “merchantable”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | -able | An adjectival suffix; forms adjectives meaning |
| 2 | Middle English | -able | able |
| 3 | Old French | -able | worthy of, deserving of; -ing, creating an... |
| 4 | Latin | -ābilis | suffixed to noun to form adjectives meaning "able to have or bring, prone to have or bring, having the power to have or bring": -able |