Versatile

How to spell versatile

9 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce versatile

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does versatile mean?

1. adjectiveAble to adapt or be adapted to many different functions, activities, or uses.

Versatile in a sentence

• A versatile employee can move between departments without much retraining.

• This versatile kitchen gadget chops, blends, and grates.

Where does versatile come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word descends from the Latin versatilis, meaning 'turning easily' or 'capable of turning', which was built on the verb versare, 'to turn frequently or keep turning'. That verb is itself a frequentative form of vertere, the basic Latin verb for 'to turn', the same root that gives English words such as 'convert', 'reverse', and 'version'. The Romans used versatilis both literally, of something that revolved, and figuratively, of a mind or person who could turn readily from one task to another. English adopted the word in the early 1600s, at first describing things that moved or turned freely and soon afterward describing people and tools that adapt smoothly to many uses. The faint spelling trap lives in the unstressed middle and end: the schwa sounds in 'ver-suh-tile' hide the second 'e' and the '-atile' ending, where writers sometimes reach for '-itile' instead.

How the word is built

• vers- (from Latin vertere, to turn)
• -atile (adjective suffix meaning able to or apt to)