tenable

[ ten-uh-buhl ]

adjective

1. capable of being held, maintained, or defended, as against attack or dispute:

   a tenable theory.

   Synonyms: maintainable, warrantable, viable, workable

2. capable of being occupied, possessed, held, or enjoyed, as under certain conditions:

   a research grant tenable for two years.

tenable

/ ˈtɛnəbəl /

adjective

1. able to be upheld, believed, maintained, or defended

Derived Forms

• ˌtenaˈbility, noun
• ˈtenably, adverb

Other Words From

• tena·bili·ty tena·ble·ness noun
• tena·bly adverb
• nonten·a·bili·ty noun
• non·tena·ble adjective
• non·tena·ble·ness noun
• non·tena·bly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of tenable¹

1570–80; < French: that can be held, equivalent to ten ( ir ) to hold (≪ Latin tenēre ) + -able -able

Word History and Origins

Origin of tenable¹

C16: from Old French, from tenir to hold, from Latin tenēre

Example Sentences

The petition calling for his resignation, which accused the archbishop of "allowing abuse to continue" and said his position was "no longer tenable", was signed by more than 14,000 people.

From BBC

"How can we honestly say to workers in Northern Ireland you’re worth less than workers in England, Wales, and Scotland. It’s not a tenable decision," she added.

From BBC

"Given his role in allowing abuse to continue, we believe that his continuing as the Archbishop of Canterbury is no longer tenable," the petition reads.

From BBC

While the “both sides” notion was always false, it is less tenable than ever to argue that the truth lies somewhere in the fictitious middle between partisan polarities.

From Salon

The idea that enemies sworn to destroy them can be allowed to amass massive arsenals on their borders is no longer tenable.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• arguable
• defensible
• justifiable
• plausible
• rational