untenable etymology

Etymology:

• From Middle English untenable, from Latin intenibilis, meaning "unable to be retained" (or "defended")
• Derived from the negative prefix in- ("not") and teneō, tenēre, meaning "to hold" or "to keep"

Meaning:

• Unable to be held or maintained
• Indefensible or unsustainable
• Cannot be justified or supported by evidence

Origin:

• The concept of "untenable" has been used since at least the 14th century.
• It was initially related to the inability to retain physical objects or control territory.
• Over time, its meaning broadened to include the inability to defend or justify ideas, arguments, or positions.

Examples:

• "The government's position on the tax hike is untenable."
• "The evidence against the defendant is overwhelming and his defense is untenable."
• "The hypothesis presented by the researcher cannot be supported by the available data and is therefore untenable."

untenable relate terms

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  Etymology Latin tenēre to hold keep possess Indo European root ten to stretch

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  Etymology Middle English fustiane Old French futaine Vulgar Latin fustanea from fustis

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  Etymology Middle English denien denyen from Anglo Norman French denier denyer from

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• satin

  Etymology Middle English satyn from Anglo French satin from Medieval Latin sattu nu

• louver

  Etymology French louver Latin lucerna lamp Proto Indo European leuk to sh

• deacon

  Etymology Middle English dekene Old French diacre Latin diaconus Greek διάκον

• will

  Etymology Will derives from the Old English word wille which meant desire or choice

• dyslexia

  Etymology dys Greek root difficulty abnormality lexia Greek root word speech