unaffordable
unaffordable
UK[ˌʌnəˈfɔːdəbl]US[ˌʌnəˈfɔːrdəbl]
adj
too expensive to be afforded by most people; beyond one's financial means.
Morpheme Breakdown
un
afford
able
un
not
afford
provide, bear the cost of
able
capable of
Etymology
the word "unaffordable" is a modern english formation built upon the well-established adjective "affordable." the root "afford" has a long history, tracing back to the old english geforthian, meaning "to carry out, accomplish," which evolved to signify having the financial means for something. the suffix "-able," borrowed from latin via french, attaches to verbs to denote capability. finally, the old english negative prefix "un-" is applied, creating a straightforward and logical compound meaning "not capable of being afforded." this construction follows a common pattern in english for creating negative adjectives and precisely conveys the concept of financial inaccessibility.
Analysis
Structure: un (not) + afford (provide, bear the cost of) + able (capable of)
- un: a prefix of germanic origin (old english un-), meaning "not," used to give a word a negative or opposite force.
- afford: a verb of english origin, from middle english aforthien, meaning "to provide, manage, bear the cost." its core sense relates to having the means for something.
- able: a suffix of latin origin (via old french -able), meaning "capable of, fit for," used to form adjectives from verbs.
Examples
the rising cost of housing in the city has made it unaffordable for many young families.
healthcare should be a basic right, not an unaffordable luxury.
for a small startup, such advanced software was simply unaffordable.