readable

The word 'readable' is a modern English compound formed from the native Germanic verb 'read' and the productive Latinate suffix '-able'. The core verb 'read' originates from the Old English rǣdan, which carried a broader sense of advising, interpreting, or explaining, a meaning that naturally extended to interpreting written characters. The suffix '-able', entering English via Old French from Latin -abilis, is used to form adjectives meaning "capable of, fit for, or worthy of" the action of the verb. Thus, 'readable' literally means "capable of being read," a concept that has evolved from interpreting advice to processing text and, in the digital age, to describing data in a machine-interpretable format.

Structure: read (to interpret written symbols) + able (capable of) - read: From Old English rǣdan (to advise, interpret, read), of Germanic origin. - able: A suffix forming adjectives, from Latin -abilis, indicating capacity or suitability.