a. [ Cf. F. accostable. ] Approachable; affable. [ R. ] Hawthorne. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being adjusted. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OE. conestable, constable, a constable (in sense 1), OF. conestable, F. connétable, LL. conestabulus, constabularius, comes stabuli, orig., count of the stable, master of the horse, equerry; comes count (L. companion) + L. stabulum stable. See Count a nobleman, and Stable. ] 1. A high officer in the monarchical establishments of the Middle Ages. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ The constable of France was the first officer of the crown, and had the chief command of the army. It was also his duty to regulate all matters of chivalry. The office was suppressed in 1627. The constable, or lord high constable, of England, was one of the highest officers of the crown, commander in chief of the forces, and keeper of the peace of the nation. He also had judicial cognizance of many important matters. The office was as early as the Conquest, but has been disused (except on great and solemn occasions), since the attainder of Stafford, duke of Buckingham, in the reign of Henry VIII. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. (Law) An officer of the peace having power as a conservator of the public peace, and bound to execute the warrants of judicial officers. Bouvier. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In England, at the present time, the constable is a conservator of the peace within his district, and is also charged by various statutes with other duties, such as serving summons, precepts, warrants, etc. In the United States, constables are town or city officers of the peace, with powers similar to those of the constables of England. In addition to their duties as conservators of the peace, they are invested with others by statute, such as to execute civil as well as criminal process in certain cases, to attend courts, keep juries, etc. In some cities, there are officers called high constables, who act as chiefs of the constabulary or police force. In other cities the title of constable, as well as the office, is merged in that of the police officer. [ 1913 Webster ]

High constable, a constable having certain duties and powers within a hundred. [ Eng. ] --
Petty constable, a conservator of the peace within a parish or tithing; a tithingman. [ Eng. ] --
Special constable, a person appointed to act as constable of special occasions. --
To
overrun the constable, or
outrun the constable, to spend more than one's income; to get into debt. [ Colloq. ] Smollett. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. conestablerie. Cf. Constabulary. ] 1. The constabulary. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

2. The district or jurisdiction of a constable. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The office or functions of a constable. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The wife of a constable. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Constable + wick a village ] The district to which a constable's power is limited. [ Obs. ] Sir M. Hale. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. F. contestable. ] Capable of being contested; debatable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. detestabilis: cf. F. détestable. ] Worthy of being detested; abominable; extremely hateful; very odious; deserving abhorrence; as, detestable vices. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thou hast defiled my sanctuary will all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations. Ezek. v. 11.

Syn. -- Abominable; odious; execrable; abhorred. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality or state of being detestable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Gust, v. ] [ Obs. ] 1. Capable of being tasted; tastable. [ 1913 Webster ]

This position informs us of a vulgar error, terming the gall
bitter; whereas there is nothing gustable sweeter. Harvey. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Pleasant to the taste; toothsome; savory. [ 1913 Webster ]

A gustable thing, seen or smelt, excites the appetite, and affects the glands and parts of the mouth. Derham. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Anything that can be tasted. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Pref. in- not + contestable: cf. F. incontestable. ] Not contestable; not to be disputed; that cannot be called in question or controverted; incontrovertible; indisputable; as, incontestable evidence, truth, or facts. Locke.

Syn. -- Incontrovertible; indisputable; irrefragable; undeniable; unquestionable; intuitable; certain.

-- In`con*test"a*ble*ness, n. -- In`con*test"a*bly, adv. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. ingustabilis. See Gustable. ] Tasteless; insipid. Sir T. Browne. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. instabilis: cf. F. instable. See In- not, and Stable, a., and cf. Unstable. ] Not stable; not standing fast or firm; unstable; prone to change or recede from a purpose; mutable; inconstant. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Instability; unstableness. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Incapable of being tasted; tasteless; unsavory. [ R. ] Grew. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ L. intestabilis: cf. F. intestable. See In- not, and Testable. ] (Law) Not capable of making a will; not legally qualified or competent to make a testament. Blackstone. [ 1913 Webster ]

pos>n. A stable where horses are kept for hire, and where stabling is provided. See Livery, n., 3 (e) (f) & (g). [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Such as can be manifested. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of being carried by, or as by, post. [ Obs. ] W. Montagu. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Payable. [ Scot. ] [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. [ imp. & p. p. Stabled p. pr. & vb. n. Stabling ] To put or keep in a stable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ OF. estable, F. stable, fr. L. stabilis, fr. stare to stand. See Stand, v. i. and cf. Establish. ] 1. Firmly established; not easily moved, shaken, or overthrown; fixed; as, a stable government. [ 1913 Webster ]

In this region of chance, . . . where nothing is stable. Rogers. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Steady in purpose; constant; firm in resolution; not easily diverted from a purpose; not fickle or wavering; as, a man of stable character. [ 1913 Webster ]

And to her husband ever meek and stable. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Durable; not subject to overthrow or change; firm; as, a stable foundation; a stable position. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. (Physics) So placed as to resist forces tending to cause motion; of such structure as to resist distortion or molecular or chemical disturbance; -- said of any body or substance. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

Stable equilibrium (Mech.), the kind of equilibrium of a body so placed that if disturbed it returns to its former position, as in the case when the center of gravity is below the point or axis of support; -- opposed to unstable equilibrium, in which the body if disturbed does not tend to return to its former position, but to move farther away from it, as in the case of a body supported at a point below the center of gravity. Cf. Neutral equilibrium, under Neutral. [ 1913 Webster ]

Syn. -- Fixed; steady; constant; abiding; strong; durable; firm. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. t. To fix; to establish. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ OF. estable, F. étable, from L. stabulum, fr. stare to stand. See Stand, v. i. ] A house, shed, or building, for beasts to lodge and feed in; esp., a building or apartment with stalls, for horses; as, a horse stable; a cow stable. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

Stable fly (Zool.), a common dipterous fly (Stomoxys calcitrans) which is abundant about stables and often enters dwellings, especially in autumn; called also biting house fly. These flies, unlike the common house flies, which they resemble, bite severely, and are troublesome to horses and cattle. They differ from the larger horse fly. [ 1913 Webster ]

v. i. To dwell or lodge in a stable; to dwell in an inclosed place; to kennel. Milton. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } n. A boy or man who attends in a stable; a groom; a hostler. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. The quality or state of being stable, or firmly established; stability. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A stable keeper. De Foe. [ 1913 Webster ]

(O.Eng. Law) The position of a man who is found at his standing in the forest, with a crossbow or a longbow bent, ready to shoot at a deer, or close by a tree with greyhounds in a leash ready to slip; -- one of the four presumptions that a man intends stealing the king's deer. Wharton. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Capable of worthy of being tasted; savory; relishing. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ See Testament. ] 1. Capable of being tested or proved. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Capable of being devised, or given by will. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Thermo- + stable fixed. ] (Physiol. Chem.) Capable of being heated to or somewhat above 55° C. without loss of special properties; -- said of proteins, immune substances, etc. [ Webster 1913 Suppl. ]

a. Incontestable. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Cf. Instable. ] Not stable; not firm, fixed, or constant; subject to change or overthrow. -- Un*sta"ble*ness, n. Chaucer. [1913 Webster]

Unstable equilibrium. See Stable equilibrium, under Stable. [1913 Webster]