stabile

  

sta·bile

[adj. stey-bil, -buhl or, esp. British, -bahyl; n. stey-beel or, esp. British, -bahyl]
adjective
1.
fixed in position; stable.
2.
Medicine/Medical. resistant to physical or chemical changes.
noun
3.
a piece of abstract sculpture having immobile units constructed of sheet metal, wire, or other material and attached to fixed supports. Compare mobile ( def 10 ).
Origin:
1790–1800; < Latin: neuter of stabilis, equivalent to sta- (stem of stāre to stand) + -bilis -ble

Related forms
non·sta·bile, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
stabile (ˈsteɪbaɪl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  arts Compare mobile a stationary abstract construction, usually of wire, metal, wood, etc
 
—adj
2.  fixed; stable
3.  resistant to chemical change
 
[C18: from Latin stabilis]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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00:10
Stabile is always a great word to know.
So is umbilicus. Does it mean:
the outer, nonvascular, nonsensitive layer of the skin, covering the true skin or corium.
the depression in the center of the surface of the abdomen indicating the point of attachment of the umbilical cord to the embryo; navel.
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

stabile sta·bile (stā'bĭl, -bəl, -bīl', -bēl')
adj.
Resistant to change; stable; steady.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

stabile

type of stationary abstract sculpture, developed by the 20th-century American artist Alexander Calder and usually characterized by simple forms executed in sheet metal; the term, coined in reference to Calder's work by Jean Arp in 1931 (compare mobile), was later applied to similar works by other artists.

Learn more about stabile with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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