Etymologically
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identifiable

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 22:56. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /aɪˈdentɪfaɪəb(ə)l/, /aɪˈdentəfaɪəb(ə)l/[1]
  • US: /aɪˌdent̬əfaɪəb(ə)l/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English identify + -able.[2][3][4] The verb identify is from French identifier, from Medieval Latin identificō (“to treat as identical”), from identitās (“identity”) and -ficō.[2][5][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

Able to be identified or recognized: 1804, in the Edinburgh Review,[2][3][6] a little after identify came to mean "to establish the identity of", recorded by 1769.[3]

Semantic evolution

The meaning has stayed the same since 1804.[2] The noun identifiability followed in the late 19th century,[4] and the adverb identifiably is also recorded.[3][6]

Timeline

  • 1769 – identify, to establish the identity of.[3]
  • 1804 – identifiable, able to be identified.[2][3][6]
  • late 19th century – identifiability.[4]

Meanings

Adjective

  1. Able to be identified, recognized or told apart from others: The suspect was identifiable from the camera footage.[6][2][7]

Word family

  • unidentifiable

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  4. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  6. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House