Inseparable

How to spell inseparable

11 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce inseparable

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does inseparable mean?

1. adjectiveSo closely connected that the parts cannot be separated or considered apart.

Inseparable in a sentence

• The two friends had been inseparable since their first day at work.

• Quality and reputation are inseparable in this business.

Where does inseparable come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word comes from the Latin inseparabilis, which combined the negative prefix in- (meaning 'not') with separabilis, meaning 'able to be separated'. That in turn rests on the verb separare, 'to set apart', which itself breaks into se- ('apart') and parare ('to make ready' or 'to prepare'), the same parare that gives us 'prepare' and 'repair'. English took the word in during the 1300s and 1400s through Old French and directly from Latin, keeping the meaning of two things so closely joined that they cannot be pulled apart. The spelling trap lives right in the middle: the root is 'separ', from separare, so it is sep-A-r, never sep-E-r, even though the unstressed vowel sounds like a faint 'uh'. Remembering that 'separate' hides inside 'inseparable' is the surest way to keep that middle 'a' in place.

How the word is built

• in- (not)
• separ (from Latin separare: to separate)
• -able (able to be)