collapsible

/kəˈlæpsəbəl/kuh-LAP-suh-buhl

Meaningthat one can slip together

Common meaning: able to be collapsed

colwith, together (form of con-)
lapsto slip, glideLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 1024 · scan
ibleable to be

‘with, together (form of con-)’ + ‘to slip, glide’ → collapsible

Journey through time

Latinlābor, lāpsus‘to slip, glide’
Englishcollapse‘to fall down’
Englishformed in English from collapsecollapsible‘able to be collapsed’ · today

Sources & notes

Inferred source: no dictionary we use has an entry for this exact word. Its history is worked out from closely related, listed words in the same family, and we are trusting that link, so bear that in mind. Inferred meaning: that one can slip together. It can be inferred from any of: collapse.

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Formed in English from collapse + -ible (inferred: this exact word is not listed in our dictionaries).

Roots

lābor, lāpsus Latin “to slip, glide”

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