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21 results for: Tenable
ten·a·ble 
Audio Help [ten-uh-buhl] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
Audio Help [ten-uh-buhl] Pronunciation Key –adjective
| 1. | capable of being held, maintained, or defended, as against attack or dispute: a tenable theory. |
| 2. | capable of being occupied, possessed, held, or enjoyed, as under certain conditions: a research grant tenable for two years. |
—Related forms
ten·a·bil·i·ty, ten·a·ble·ness, noun
ten·a·bly, adverb
—Synonyms 1. workable, viable, maintainable, warrantable.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
Tenable
To learn more about Tenable visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| ten·a·ble
Audio Help (těn'ə-bəl) Pronunciation Key
adj.
[French, from Old French, from tenir, to hold, from Latin tenēre; see ten- in Indo-European roots.] ten'a·bil'i·ty, ten'a·ble·ness n., ten'a·bly adv. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
tenable
1579, from M.Fr. tenable, from O.Fr. (12c.), from tenir "to hold," from L. tenere "hold, keep" (see tenet).
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| tenable | |
adjective | |
| based on sound reasoning or evidence; "well-founded suspicions" |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
Tenable
Ab*stain"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Abstained; p. pr. & vb. n. Abstaining.] [OE. absteynen, abstenen, OF. astenir, abstenir, F. abstenir, fr. L. abstinere, abstentum, v. t. & v. i., to keep from; ab, abs + tenere to hold. See Tenable.] To hold one's self aloof; to forbear or refrain voluntarily, and especially from an indulgence of the passions or appetites; -- with from. Not a few abstained from voting. --Macaulay. Who abstains from meat that is not gaunt? --Shak. Syn: To refrain; forbear; withhold; deny one's self; give up; relinquish.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Con*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Contained; p. pr. & vb. n. Containing.] [OE. contenen, conteinen, F. contenir, fr. L. continere, -tentum; con- + tenere to hold. See Tenable, and cf. Countenance.]1. To hold within fixed limits; to comprise; to include; to inclose; to hold. Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens can not contain thee; how much less this house! --2 Chron. vi. 18. When that this body did contain a spirit. --Shak. What thy stores contain bring forth. --Milton. 2. To have capacity for; to be able to hold; to hold; to be equivalent to; as, a bushel contains four pecks. 3. To put constraint upon; to restrain; to confine; to keep within bounds. [Obs., exept as used reflexively.] The king's person contains the unruly people from evil occasions. --Spenser. Fear not, my lord: we can contain ourselves. --Shak.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
De*tain"\ (d[-e]*t[=a]n"), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Detained; p. pr. & vb. n. Detaining.] [F. d['e]tenir, L. detinere, detentum; de + tenere to hold. See Tenable.]1. To keep back or from; to withhold. Detain not the wages of the hireling. --Jer. Taylor. 2. To restrain from proceeding; to stay or stop; to delay; as, we were detained by an accident. Let us detain thee, until we shall have made ready a kid for thee. --Judges xiii. 15. 3. To hold or keep in custody. Syn: To withhold; retain; stop; stay; arrest; check; retard; delay; hinder.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
En`ter*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Entertained; p. pr. & vb. n. Entertaining.] [F. entretenir; entre between (L. inter) + tenir to hold, L. tenere. See Tenable.]1. To be at the charges of; to take or keep in one's service; to maintain; to support; to harbor; to keep. You, sir, I entertain for one of my hundred. --Shak. 2. To give hospitable reception and maintenance to; to receive at one's board, or into one's house; to receive as a guest. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers; for thereby some have entertained unawares. --Heb. xiii. 2. 3. To engage the attention of agreeably; to amuse with that which makes the time pass pleasantly; to divert; as, to entertain friends with conversation, etc. The weary time she can not entertain. --Shak. 4. To give reception to; to receive, in general; to receive and take into consideration; to admit, treat, or make use of; as, to entertain a proposal. I am not here going to entertain so large a theme as the philosophy of Locke. --De Quincey. A rumor gained ground, -- and, however absurd, was entertained by some very sensible people. --Hawthorne. 5. To meet or encounter, as an enemy. [Obs.] --Shak. 6. To keep, hold, or maintain in the mind with favor; to keep in the mind; to harbor; to cherish; as, to entertain sentiments. 7. To lead on; to bring along; to introduce. [Obs.] To baptize all nations, and entertain them into the services institutions of the holy Jesus. --Jer. Taylor. Syn: To amuse; divert; maintain. See Amuse.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ob*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Obtained; p. pr. & vb. n. Obtaining.] [F. obtenir, L. obtinere; ob (see Ob-) + tenere to hold. See Tenable.]1. To hold; to keep; to possess. [Obs.] His mother, then, is mortal, but his Sire He who obtains the monarchy of heaven. --Milton. 2. To get hold of by effort; to gain possession of; to procure; to acquire, in any way. Some pray for riches; riches they obtain. --Dryden. By guileful fair words peace may be obtained. --Shak. It may be that I may obtain children by her. --Gen. xvi. 2. Syn: To attain; gain; procure; acquire; win; earn. Usage: See Attain. -- To Obtain, Get, Gain, Earn, Acquire. The idea of getting is common to all these terms. We may, indeed, with only a slight change of sense, substitute get for either of them; as, to get or to gain a prize; to get or to obtain an employment; to get or to earn a living; to get or to acquire a language. To gain is to get by striving; and as this is often a part of our good fortune, the word gain is peculiarly applicable to whatever comes to us fortuitously. Thus, we gain a victory, we gain a cause, we gain an advantage, etc. To earn is to deserve by labor or service; as, to earn good wages; to earn a triumph. Unfortunately, one does not always get or obtain what he has earned. To obtain implies desire for possession, and some effort directed to the attainment of that which is not immediately within our reach. Whatever we thus seek and get, we obtain, whether by our own exertions or those of others; whether by good or bad means; whether permanently, or only for a time. Thus, a man obtains an employment; he obtains an answer to a letter, etc. To acquire is more limited and specific. We acquire what comes to us gradually in the regular exercise of our abilities, while we obtain what comes in any way, provided we desire it. Thus, we acquire knowledge, property, honor, reputation, etc. What we acquire becomes, to a great extent, permanently our own; as, to acquire a language; to acquire habits of industry, etc.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Per*tain"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Pertained; p. pr. & vb. n. Pertaining.] [OE. partenen, OF. partenir, fr. L. pertinere to stretch out, reach, pertain; per + tenere to hold, keep. See Per-, and Tenable, and cf. Appertain, Pertinent.]1. To belong; to have connection with, or dependence on, something, as an appurtenance, attribute, etc.; to appertain; as, saltness pertains to the ocean; flowers pertain to plant life. Men hate those who affect that honor by ambition which pertaineth not to them. --Hayward. 2. To have relation or reference to something. These words pertain unto us at this time as they pertained to them at their time. --Latimer.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Re*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Retained; p. pr. & vb. n. Retaining.] [F. retainir, L. retinere; pref. re- re- + tenere to hold, keep. See Tenable, and cf. Rein of a bridle, Retention, Retinue.]1. To continue to hold; to keep in possession; not to lose, part with, or dismiss; to retrain from departure, escape, or the like. "Thy shape invisibleretain." --Shak. Be obedient, and retain Unalterably firm his love entire. --Milton. An executor may retain a debt due to him from the testator. --Blackstone. 2. To keep in pay; to employ by a preliminary fee paid; to hire; to engage; as, to retain a counselor. A Benedictine convent has now retained the most learned father of their order to write in its defense. --Addison. 3. To restrain; to prevent. [Obs.] --Sir W. Temple. Retaining wall (Arch. & Engin.), a wall built to keep any movable backing, or a bank of sand or earth, in its place; -- called also retain wall. Syn: To keep; hold; retrain. See Keep.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Sus*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sustained; p. pr. & vb. n. Sustaining.] [OE. sustenen, susteinen, OF. sustenir, sostenir, F. soutenir (the French prefix is properly fr. L. subtus below, fr. sub under), L. sustinere; pref. sus- (see Sub-) + tenere to hold. See Tenable, and cf. Sustenance.]1. To keep from falling; to bear; to uphold; to support; as, a foundation sustains the superstructure; a beast sustains a load; a rope sustains a weight. Every pillar the temple to sustain. --Chaucer. 2. Hence, to keep from sinking, as in despondence, or the like; to support. No comfortable expectations of another life to sustain him under the evils in this world. --Tillotson. 3. To maintain; to keep alive; to support; to subsist; to nourish; as, provisions to sustain an army. 4. To aid, comfort, or relieve; to vindicate. --Shak. His sons, who seek the tyrant to sustain. --Dryden. 5. To endure without failing or yielding; to bear up under; as, to sustain defeat and disappointment. 6. To suffer; to bear; to undergo. Shall Turnus, then, such endless toil sustain? --Dryden. You shall sustain more new disgraces. --Shak. 7. To allow the prosecution of; to admit as valid; to sanction; to continue; not to dismiss or abate; as, the court sustained the action or suit. 8. To prove; to establish by evidence; to corroborate or confirm; to be conclusive of; as, to sustain a charge, an accusation, or a proposition. Syn: To support; uphold; subsist; assist; relieve; suffer; undergo.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"a*ble\, a. [F. tenable, fr. tenir to hold, L. tenere. See Thin, and cf. Continue, Continent, Entertain, Maintain, Tenant, Tent.] Capable of being held, naintained, or defended, as against an assailant or objector, or againts attempts to take or process; as, a tenable fortress, a tenable argument. If you have hitherto concealed his sight, Let it be tenable in your silence still. --Shak. I would be the last man in the world to give up his cause when it was tenable. --Sir W. Scott.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Te*na"cious\, a. [L. tenax, -acis, from tenere to hold. See Tenable, and cf. Tenace.]1. Holding fast, or inclined to hold fast; inclined to retain what is in possession; as, men tenacious of their just rights. 2. Apt to retain; retentive; as, a tenacious memory. 3. Having parts apt to adhere to each other; cohesive; tough; as, steel is a tenacious metal; tar is more tenacious than oil. --Sir I. Newton. 4. Apt to adhere to another substance; glutinous; viscous; sticking; adhesive. "Female feet, too weak to struggle with tenacious clay." --Cowper. 5. Niggardly; closefisted; miserly. --Ainsworth. 6. Holding stoutly to one's opinion or purpose; obstinate; stubborn. -- Te*na"cious*ly, adv. -- Te*na"cious*ness, n.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"ant\, n. [F. tenant, p. pr. of tenir to hold. See Tenable, and cf. Lieutenant.]1. (Law) One who holds or possesses lands, or other real estate, by any kind of right, whether in fee simple, in common, in severalty, for life, for years, or at will; also, one who has the occupation or temporary possession of lands or tenements the title of which is in another; -- correlative to landlord. See Citation from --Blackstone, under Tenement, 2. --Blount. Wharton. 2. One who has possession of any place; a dweller; an occupant. "Sweet tenants of this grove." --Cowper. The hhappy tenant of your shade. --Cowley. The sister tenants of the middle deep. --Byron. Tenant in capite [L. in in + capite, abl. of caput head, chief.], or Tenant in chief, by the laws of England, one who holds immediately of the king. According to the feudal system, all lands in England are considered as held immediately or mediately of the king, who is styled lord paramount. Such tenants, however, are considered as having the fee of the lands and permanent possession. --Blackstone. Tenant in common. See under Common.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"et\, n. [L. tenet he holds, fr. tenere to hold. See Tenable.] Any opinion, principle, dogma, belief, or doctrine, which a person holds or maintains as true; as, the tenets of Plato or of Cicero. That al animals of the land are in their kind in the sea, . . . is a tenet very questionable. --Sir T. Browne. The religious tenets of his family he had early renounced with contempt. --Macaulay. Syn: Dogma; doctrine; opinion; principle; position. See Dogma.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"nis\, n. [OE. tennes, tenies, tenyse; of uncertain origin, perhaps fr. F. tenez hold or take it, fr. tenir to hold (see Tenable).] A play in which a ball is driven to and fro, or kept in motion by striking it with a racket or with the open hand. --Shak. His easy bow, his good stories, his style of dancing and playing tennis, . . . were familiar to all London. --Macaulay. Court tennis, the old game of tennis as played within walled courts of peculiar construction; -- distinguished from lawn tennis. Lawn tennis. See under Lawn, n. Tennis court, a place or court for playing the game of tennis. --Shak.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"on\, n. [F., fr. tenir to hold. See Tenable.] (Carp. & Join.) A projecting member left by cutting away the wood around it, and made to insert into a mortise, and in this way secure together the parts of a frame; especially, such a member when it passes entirely through the thickness of the piece in which the mortise is cut, and shows on the other side. Cf. Tooth, Tusk. Tenon saw, a saw with a thin blade, usually stiffened by a brass or steel back, for cutting tenons. [Corruptly written tenant saw.] --Gwilt.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"or\, n. [L., from tenere to hold; hence, properly, a holding on in a continued course: cf. F. teneur. See Tenable, and cf. Tenor a kind of voice.]1. A state of holding on in a continuous course; manner of continuity; constant mode; general tendency; course; career. Along the cool sequestered vale of life They kept the noiseless tenor of their away. --Gray. 2. That course of thought which holds on through a discourse; the general drift or course of thought; purport; intent; meaning; understanding. When it [the bond] is paid according to the tenor. --Shak. Does not the whole tenor of the divine law positively require humility and meekness to all men? --Spart. 3. Stamp; character; nature. This success would look like chance, if it were perpetual, and always of the same tenor. --Dryden. 4. (Law) An exact copy of a writing, set forth in the words and figures of it. It differs from purport, which is only the substance or general import of the instrument. --Bouvier. 5. [F. t['e]nor, L. tenor, properly, a holding; -- so called because the tenor was the voice which took and held the principal part, the plain song, air, or tune, to which the other voices supplied a harmony above and below: cf. It. tenore.] (Mus.) (a) The higher of the two kinds of voices usually belonging to adult males; hence, the part in the harmony adapted to this voice; the second of the four parts in the scale of sounds, reckoning from the base, and originally the air, to which the other parts were auxillary. (b) A person who sings the tenor, or the instrument that play it. Old Tenor, New Tenor, Middle Tenor, different descriptions of paper money, issued at different periods, by the American colonial governments in the last century.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Tenable
Ten"ure\, n. [F. tenure, OF. teneure, fr. F. tenir to hold. See Tenable.]1. The act or right of holding, as property, especially real estate. That the tenure of estates might rest on equity, the Indian title to lands was in all cases to be quieted. --Bancroft. 2. (Eng. Law) The manner of holding lands and tenements of a superior. Note: Tenure is inseparable from the idea of property in land, according to the theory of the English law; and this idea of tenure pervades, to a considerable extent, the law of real property in the United States, where the title to land is essentially allodial, and almost all lands are held in fee simple, not of a superior, but the whole right and title to the property being vested in the owner. Tenure, in general, then, is the particular manner of holding real estate, as by exclusive title or ownership, by fee simple, by fee tail, by courtesy, in dower, by copyhold, by lease, at will, etc. 3. The consideration, condition, or service which the occupier of land gives to his lord or superior for the use of his land. 4. Manner of holding, in general; as, in absolute governments, men hold their rights by a precarious tenure. All that seems thine own, Held by the tenure of his will alone. --Cowper. Tenure by fee alms. (Law) See Frankalmoigne.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
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