Wiktionary

acceptable

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From Middle English acceptable, from Anglo-Norman and Middle French acceptable, from Late Latin acceptābilis (“worthy of acceptance”).

Morphologically accept +‎ -able.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /əkˈsɛp.tə.bəl/, /ækˈsɛp.tə.bəl/, /ɪkˈsɛp.tə.bəl/
  • (obsolete) IPA(key): /ˈæksɛp.tə.bəl/[1]
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Hyphenation: ac‧cep‧ti‧ble

Adjective

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acceptable (comparative more acceptable, superlative most acceptable)

  1. Worthy, decent, sure of being accepted or received with at least moderate pleasure.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:good, Thesaurus:permissible, Thesaurus:standard, Thesaurus:valid
    Antonyms: inacceptable, rejectable, unacceptable
    We need to find an acceptable present for Jeff.
    • 1883, United States. War Department, Annual Reports of the War Department, volume 1, page 128:
      I think if post commanders of the unchaplained posts could employ acceptable clergymen […] then the needs might be met.
    • 1999 February 1, Pamela Mendels, “Judge Delays Online Pornography Law”, in The New York Times‎[2], archived from the original on 6 October 2022:
      A site that carried [sexually explicit] material, but that gated it off from children through credit cards or other mechanisms to verify the age of the user, would have an acceptable defense under the act.
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:acceptable.
  2. Barely worthy, less than excellent; passable.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:satisfactory
    Antonyms: inacceptable, unacceptable
    The designs were acceptable, but they were nothing special either.

Derived terms

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Translations

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Noun

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acceptable (plural acceptables)

  1. Someone or something that is acceptable.
    Antonym: rejectable
    • 1922, Madhusūdan Kaul, “Introduction”, in Sri Mālinīvijayottara Tantram (Kashmir Series of Texts and Studies; XXXVII), Bombay: […] “Tatva-vivechaka” Press, page xvii:
      The whole range of the knowable is divided into two classes, the acceptable and the avoidable. The acceptables are: Śiva, Śakti, Vidyesa, Mantra, Mantreśvara and the Jivas.
    • c. 1929–1930, Harry Alan Potamkin, “A Diet of Stars”, in Lewis Jacobs, editor, The Compound Cinema: The Film Writings of Harry Alan Potamkin (Studies in Culture & Communication), New York, N.Y.; London: Teachers College Press, published 1977, →ISBN, part 3 (Miscellany), section 9 (Other Writings), page 565:
      The good old acceptables are called “character” actors. An actor of the versatile order is called, casually, even contemptuously, a “character” actor.
    • 1941 July 4, Henry Klein, “The Dental Status and Dental Needs of Young Adult Males, Rejectable or Acceptable for Military Service, According to Selective Service Dental Requirements”, in Public Health Reports, volume 56, number 27, Washington, D.C.: United States Public Health Service, pages 1373–1374:
      Close to 3 percent of the acceptables are free of DMF teeth while none of the rejectables have fewer than 7 DMF teeth.
    • 1974 June 19, Ray Wells, “The Church and the Aging”, in The Free Will Baptist, Ayden, N.C., page 5, column 3:
      The church will not be content to see that older persons are housed and entertained, or even that acceptables are worked out to provide them with therapy and income from jobs.

References

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  1. ^ Jespersen, Otto (1909), A Modern English Grammar on Historical Principles (Sammlung germanischer Elementar- und Handbücher; 9)‎[1], volume I: Sounds and Spellings, London: George Allen & Unwin, published 1961, § 5.66, page 170.

Further reading

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Catalan

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Latin acceptābilis.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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acceptable m or f (masculine and feminine plural acceptables)

  1. acceptable
    Antonym: inacceptable

Derived terms

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Further reading

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Danish

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Adjective

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acceptable

  1. definite singular of acceptabel
  2. plural of acceptabel

French

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Etymology

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    Borrowed from Latin acceptābilis.

    Pronunciation

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    Adjective

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    acceptable (plural acceptables)

    1. acceptable
      Antonym: inacceptable
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    Descendants

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    • → German: akzeptabel
      • → Swedish: acceptabel

    Further reading

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    Middle English

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    Alternative forms

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    Etymology

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    Borrowed from Anglo-Norman and Middle French acceptable, from Late Latin acceptābilis; by surface analysis, accepten +‎ -able. First attested in c. 1382.

    Pronunciation

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    • IPA(key): /ˌaksɛpˈtaːblə/, /ˌaksɛpˈtaːbəl/
    • IPA(key): /ˈaksɛptabəl/ (with stress shift)

    Adjective

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    acceptable

    1. Pleasant, agreeable; causing a positive reception.
    2. Fitting, appropriate (for a situation)

    Usage notes

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    • Middle English acceptable is more positive than its modern descendant.

    Descendants

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    References

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    Spanish

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    Pronunciation

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    • IPA(key): /akθepˈtable/ [ak.θepˈt̪a.βle]
    • Rhymes: -able
    • Syllabification: ac‧cep‧ta‧ble

    Adjective

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    acceptable m or f (masculine and feminine plural acceptables)

    1. archaic form of aceptable
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    Further reading

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    • “acceptable”, in Tesoro de los diccionarios históricos de la lengua española [Thesaurus of the Historical Dictionaries of the Spanish Language], Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], launched 2021

    Swedish

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    Adjective

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    acceptable

    1. definite natural masculine singular of acceptabel

    Anagrams

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