curable
UK[ˈkjʊərəbl]US[ˈkjʊrəbl]
adj
(of a disease or condition) able to be cured or treated successfully.
Morpheme Breakdown
cur
able
cur
care, healing
able
capable of
Etymology
the word 'curable' is built upon the latin root 'cura', which originally meant 'care' or 'anxiety'. in a medical context, this care evolved into the sense of 'treatment' or 'healing'. the suffix '-able', derived from latin '-abilis', indicates capability or fitness. therefore, the literal construction 'capable of being cared for/healed' directly and logically yields the modern meaning of an illness that can be successfully treated.
Analysis
Structure: cur (care, healing) + able (capable of)
cur (from latin 'cura', meaning 'care, concern, healing'), able (from latin suffix '-abilis', via old french, meaning 'capable of, fit for').
Examples
many forms of cancer are now curable if detected early.
the infection is unpleasant but fortunately curable with a simple course of antibiotics.
doctors were relieved to confirm that the patient's condition was entirely curable.