imaginableadj.

Brit.

/ɪˈmadʒᵻnəbl/,

/ɪˈmadʒn̩əbl/, U.S.

/ᵻˈmædʒ(ə)nəb(ə)l/

Forms: Middle English ymaginable, Middle English ymagynable, late Middle English (in a late copy) 1500s– imaginable, 1500s imagynable, 1600s immaginable.

Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: French imaginable; Latin imaginabilis.

Etymology: < (i) Middle French imaginable, ymaginable, ymagynable (French imaginable ) capable of being imagined (c1298 in Old French), and its etymon (ii) post-classical Latin imaginabilis capable of being imagined (4th cent.; 6th cent. in Boethius) < classical Latin imāgināre imagine v. + -bilis -ble suffix. Compare Catalan imaginable (late 13th cent.), Spanish imaginable (16th cent.), Italian immaginabile (a1332).

Capable of being imagined; conceivable.

a. In ordinary (chiefly predicative) use.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of imagination > mental image, idea, or fancy > [adjective] > capable of being imagined

imaginable?c1400

imaginative1532

imaginary1624

imaginal1647

imageable1654

visualizable1956

?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) v. pr. iv. l. 4807 Resoun..comprendiþ þe þinges ymaginable [L. imaginabilia] and sensible.

1532 T. More Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 547/1 Hys worde, whych he by a meane to vs not imagynable continually speaketh vnto them.

1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 265 Such a dreadfull noyse, as is scarce imaginable.

1651 T. Hobbes Philos. Rudim. x. §2. 150 Nor is it imaginable which way publick treasures can be a grievance to private subjects.

1750 tr. C. Leonardus Mirror of Stones 51 The human understanding extends itself to things intelligible and the imagination to things imaginable.

1852 H. Rogers Eclipse of Faith 76 They [sc. miracles] are, at least, imaginable.

1862 H. Spencer First Princ. i. v. §29. 103 The abolition of an imaginable agency, and the substitution of an unimaginable one.

1910 J. A. R. Marriott Second Chambers xii. 293 Is it imaginable that a Ministry could, under the Cabinet system, retain office after the rejection by the people of a really important measure?

1936 A. Huxley Olive Tree 117 Nowhere else would such a headline as ‘Peer's Cousin in Car Smash’ be..imaginable.

2004 Times Lit. Suppl. 2 Apr. 13/4 It is..scarcely imaginable that such a polyglot genius could live in a country for so long without acquiring at least a passive command of its language.

b. In predicative use after a noun preceded by all (the) or a superlative, esp. the greatest, and attributive after all, every, or no: used to emphasize the absolute or universal nature of a statement.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > the whole or all > [adjective] > emphatically

whole1553

imaginable1614

conceivable1615

1614 T. Jackson Third Bk. Comm. Apostles Creede i. 1 Erecting an intire frame, capacious of all villanies imaginable; farre surpassing the hugest mathematicall forme humane fancie could haue conceiued of such matters.

1656 B. Harris tr. J. N. de Parival Hist. Iron Age i. iv. ii. 102 The People..held him still, for the Authour of all imaginable mischief to the Kingdom.

1692 J. Washington tr. J. Milton Def. People Eng. v. 116 Guilty of the greatest Crimes imaginable.

1702 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion I. i. 12 Urged with all the artifice and address imaginable.

1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 41 The Elector of Cologne is making all imaginable Hast to remove from hence to Rheims.

1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 123. ¶4 He had all the Duty and Affection imaginable for a supposed Parent.

1817 T. R. Malthus Ess. Princ. Population (ed. 5) II. iii. vii. 379 Under the best form of government imaginable.

1880 L. Stephen Alexander Pope iii. 73 ‘Ass’ is the vilest word imaginable in English or Latin.

1884 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 25 491 There is no imaginable reason why the Court should not have power to sanction them.

1915 St. Nicholas June 701/2 About three hours later the boys were swimming in the nicest little swimming-pool imaginable.

1949 ‘G. Orwell’ Nineteen Eighty-four ii. iii. 133 No imaginable committee would ever sanction such a marriage.

2004 A. C. L. Davies Perspectives on Labour Law ii. 22 An equation called a ‘production function’ can be used to express all imaginable combinations of inputs and outputs for a particular firm.

2007 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 6 Dec. e1/3 In a more innocent age, new mothers generally considered their babies to be the greatest gift imaginable.

Derivatives

iˈmaginableness n.

ΚΠ

1727 N. Bailey Universal Etymol. Eng. Dict. II Imaginableness, capableness of being imagined.

1847 J. P. Menge tr. J. A. Moehler On Relation of Islam to Gospel iii. 52 The observation..that the monotheism of Islam..must be rejected, whenever we talk of the imaginableness or unimaginableness of a certain idea concerning God.

1935 Philos. Rev. 44 184 ‘Conceivability’..may denote imaginableness as well as truly implicated meaning, and it may lead to wildest phantasy instead of actual philosophic wisdom.

1973 E. G. Ruestow Physics at 17th & 18th-cent. Leiden iii. 50 When applied to the realm of corporeal existence, this criterion tended to become a test of crude imaginableness.

1999 J. L. Marsh Process, Praxis, & Transcendence i. i. 14 In contrast to the imaginableness of the perceived object, the universal is not imaginable.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

单词	imaginable
释义	imaginableadj. Brit. /ɪˈmadʒᵻnəbl/, /ɪˈmadʒn̩əbl/, U.S. /ᵻˈmædʒ(ə)nəb(ə)l/ Forms: Middle English ymaginable, Middle English ymagynable, late Middle English (in a late copy) 1500s– imaginable, 1500s imagynable, 1600s immaginable. Origin: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from French. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Etymons: French imaginable; Latin imaginabilis. Etymology: < (i) Middle French imaginable, ymaginable, ymagynable (French imaginable ) capable of being imagined (c1298 in Old French), and its etymon (ii) post-classical Latin imaginabilis capable of being imagined (4th cent.; 6th cent. in Boethius) < classical Latin imāgināre imagine v. + -bilis -ble suffix. Compare Catalan imaginable (late 13th cent.), Spanish imaginable (16th cent.), Italian immaginabile (a1332). Capable of being imagined; conceivable. a. In ordinary (chiefly predicative) use. ΘΚΠ the mind > mental capacity > perception or cognition > faculty of imagination > mental image, idea, or fancy > [adjective] > capable of being imagined imaginable?c1400 imaginative1532 imaginary1624 imaginal1647 imageable1654 visualizable1956 ?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) v. pr. iv. l. 4807 Resoun..comprendiþ þe þinges ymaginable [L. imaginabilia] and sensible. 1532 T. More Confut. Tyndale in Wks. 547/1 Hys worde, whych he by a meane to vs not imagynable continually speaketh vnto them. 1638 T. Herbert Some Yeares Trav. (rev. ed.) 265 Such a dreadfull noyse, as is scarce imaginable. 1651 T. Hobbes Philos. Rudim. x. §2. 150 Nor is it imaginable which way publick treasures can be a grievance to private subjects. 1750 tr. C. Leonardus Mirror of Stones 51 The human understanding extends itself to things intelligible and the imagination to things imaginable. 1852 H. Rogers Eclipse of Faith 76 They [sc. miracles] are, at least, imaginable. 1862 H. Spencer First Princ. i. v. §29. 103 The abolition of an imaginable agency, and the substitution of an unimaginable one. 1910 J. A. R. Marriott Second Chambers xii. 293 Is it imaginable that a Ministry could, under the Cabinet system, retain office after the rejection by the people of a really important measure? 1936 A. Huxley Olive Tree 117 Nowhere else would such a headline as ‘Peer's Cousin in Car Smash’ be..imaginable. 2004 Times Lit. Suppl. 2 Apr. 13/4 It is..scarcely imaginable that such a polyglot genius could live in a country for so long without acquiring at least a passive command of its language. b. In predicative use after a noun preceded by all (the) or a superlative, esp. the greatest, and attributive after all, every, or no: used to emphasize the absolute or universal nature of a statement. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > the whole or all > [adjective] > emphatically whole1553 imaginable1614 conceivable1615 1614 T. Jackson Third Bk. Comm. Apostles Creede i. 1 Erecting an intire frame, capacious of all villanies imaginable; farre surpassing the hugest mathematicall forme humane fancie could haue conceiued of such matters. 1656 B. Harris tr. J. N. de Parival Hist. Iron Age i. iv. ii. 102 The People..held him still, for the Authour of all imaginable mischief to the Kingdom. 1692 J. Washington tr. J. Milton Def. People Eng. v. 116 Guilty of the greatest Crimes imaginable. 1702 Clarendon's Hist. Rebellion I. i. 12 Urged with all the artifice and address imaginable. 1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 41 The Elector of Cologne is making all imaginable Hast to remove from hence to Rheims. 1711 J. Addison Spectator No. 123. ¶4 He had all the Duty and Affection imaginable for a supposed Parent. 1817 T. R. Malthus Ess. Princ. Population (ed. 5) II. iii. vii. 379 Under the best form of government imaginable. 1880 L. Stephen Alexander Pope iii. 73 ‘Ass’ is the vilest word imaginable in English or Latin. 1884 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 25 491 There is no imaginable reason why the Court should not have power to sanction them. 1915 St. Nicholas June 701/2 About three hours later the boys were swimming in the nicest little swimming-pool imaginable. 1949 ‘G. Orwell’ Nineteen Eighty-four ii. iii. 133 No imaginable committee would ever sanction such a marriage. 2004 A. C. L. Davies Perspectives on Labour Law ii. 22 An equation called a ‘production function’ can be used to express all imaginable combinations of inputs and outputs for a particular firm. 2007 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 6 Dec. e1/3 In a more innocent age, new mothers generally considered their babies to be the greatest gift imaginable. Derivatives iˈmaginableness n. ΚΠ 1727 N. Bailey Universal Etymol. Eng. Dict. II Imaginableness, capableness of being imagined. 1847 J. P. Menge tr. J. A. Moehler On Relation of Islam to Gospel iii. 52 The observation..that the monotheism of Islam..must be rejected, whenever we talk of the imaginableness or unimaginableness of a certain idea concerning God. 1935 Philos. Rev. 44 184 ‘Conceivability’..may denote imaginableness as well as truly implicated meaning, and it may lead to wildest phantasy instead of actual philosophic wisdom. 1973 E. G. Ruestow Physics at 17th & 18th-cent. Leiden iii. 50 When applied to the realm of corporeal existence, this criterion tended to become a test of crude imaginableness. 1999 J. L. Marsh Process, Praxis, & Transcendence i. i. 14 In contrast to the imaginableness of the perceived object, the universal is not imaginable. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2009; most recently modified version published online March 2022). < adj.?c1400
随便看	thirding thirdings thirdlevel thirdlier thirdliest thirdling thirdly thirdman argument thirdness thirdpointed thirdrate thirdrateling thirdrater thirds thirds card thirds-and-fourths thirdsandfourths thirdsman thirdsmen thirdsome thirdstage thirdtermery thirdwave thirdwave feminism thirkin