indeterminability
|in-di-ter-mi-na-bi-li-ty|
🇺🇸
/ˌɪndɪtərməˈnæbɪləti/
🇬🇧
/ˌɪndɪtə(r)mɪˈnæbɪlɪti/
not able to be determined
Etymology
'indeterminability' is formed in modern English from the prefix 'in-' (meaning 'not') + 'determinability', where 'determinability' comes from 'determine' + the nominalizing suffix '-ability'. 'Determine' ultimately traces back to Latin 'determinare' ('de-' + 'terminare').
'indeterminability' developed from the adjective 'indeterminable' and the noun-forming suffix '-ity' in Late Modern English. 'Indeterminable' itself derives from 'indeterminate' (from Latin 'indeterminatus') and 'indeterminate' comes from Latin 'indeterminatus' (in- + 'determinatus'). The root 'determinare' passed into Old French and Middle English as 'determine' before forming later derivatives.
Initially the components conveyed 'not' + 'capable of being determined' in a literal morphological sense; over time the noun has been used more abstractly in technical, philosophical, and scientific contexts to denote inherent or practical inability to determine a value or state.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the quality or state of being impossible to determine, measure, or fix precisely; the condition of being indeterminable.
The indeterminability of the system's initial conditions made long-term forecasting unreliable.
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Noun 2
in technical or philosophical contexts, the property that a parameter or value cannot be uniquely determined from available information or measurement (e.g., due to limits of observation or inherent ambiguity).
Philosophers discussed the indeterminability of certain quantum states under the given measurement protocols.
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Last updated: 2025/09/26 13:07