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word of the day

The word for today is…

untenable (adj) – 1. Not capable of being maintained or defended.
2. Not capable of being occupied or lived in.
3. (Usage Problem) Insupportable; intolerable.

Source : The Free Dictionary

Etymology : Untenable and its opposite tenable come to us from Old French tenir (“to hold, have possession of”) and ultimately from Latin ten?re (“to hold, occupy, possess”). We tend to use untenable in situations where an idea or position is so off base that holding onto it is unjustified or inexcusable. One way to hold onto the meaning of untenable is to associate it with other ten?re descendants whose meanings are associated with “holding” or “holding onto.” Tenacious (“holding fast”) is one example. Others are contain, detain, sustain, maintain, and retain.

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