INDECLINABLE Meaning and
Definition
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The term "indeclinable" refers to a grammatical feature of certain words or parts of speech that do not change their form, regardless of the grammatical context in which they appear. It is derived from the Latin word "declinabilis," meaning "that which cannot be declined."
In many languages, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and verbs typically exhibit various inflections to indicate variations in number, gender, case, or tense. However, "indeclinable" words remain unchanged throughout these grammatical transformations. These words maintain a fixed form regardless of whether they are singular or plural, masculine or feminine, or even in different cases if applicable.
In English, while most parts of speech are declinable, there are a few exceptions that can be considered indeclinable, particularly within specific grammatical constructions. For instance, the word "sheep" remains the same both in its singular and plural forms. Similarly, certain pronouns such as "it" and "you" do not change, regardless of case.
In other languages with more extensive inflectional systems, like Latin or Russian, indeclinable words may be more prevalent. For example, in Latin, the adverbs and prepositions often lack variations in form as they do not need to agree with other elements in a sentence.
Overall, "indeclinable" refers to those words or parts of speech that maintain an unvarying form despite the grammatical changes encountered in a language.
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That cannot be varied by terminations.
Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.
Common Misspellings for INDECLINABLE
Etymology of INDECLINABLE
The word "indeclinable" is formed by adding the prefix "in-" which means "not" or "without", to the word "declinable". The term "declinable" is derived from the Latin word "declinabilis", which comes from the infinitive form "declinare", meaning "to inflect" or "to decline". In Latin, this word specifically refers to the process of changing the form of a noun, pronoun, or adjective according to its grammatical case, number, or gender. Therefore, "indeclinable" refers to something that cannot be declined or inflected, usually used to describe a part of speech that remains the same regardless of its grammatical function.
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