fungible

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English

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WOTD – 27 June 2009

Etymology

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1765 as noun, 1818 as adjective, from Medieval Latin fungibilis, from Latin fungor (“I perform, I discharge a duty”) (English function) +‎ -ible (“able to”). Originally a legal term,[1] going back to Roman law: res fungibilis (“replaceable things”).

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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fungible (comparative more fungible, superlative most fungible)

  1. (finance and commerce) Able to be substituted for something of equal value or utility.
    Synonyms: interchangeable, exchangeable, replaceable.
    Antonym: nonfungible
    • 1649, Antony Ascham, Of the confusions and revolutions of governments, page 30:
      Take away this fungible instrument from the service of our necessities and how shall we exercise our Charity, which is a branch of Religion and Justice, as well as of Humanity?
    • 1876, [1877], Samuel Dana Horton, Silver and Gold and Their Relation to the Problem of Resumption, page 116:
      Gold is fungible. Silver is fungible; that is, these metals are both so homogeneous that, if I get a pound of pure gold, for example, it is indifferent to me whether it be this pound or that pound, one is as good as another
    • 2011, Will Self, “The frowniest spot on Earth”, in London Review of Books, XXXIII.9:
      At the core of Kasarda’s conception of the aerotropolis lies the notion that space – unlike time – is fungible.
    • 2013, Johanna Rothman, Hiring the Best Knowledge Workers, Techies & Nerds:
      However, unless you are unique among technical organizations and have fungible staff members who can easily replace each other, you'll need to augment the standardized description with your needs for this particular position.

Derived terms

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Translations

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Noun

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fungible (plural fungibles)

  1. (chiefly in the plural) Any fungible item.
    Antonym: nonfungible
    • 2005, Alison Clarke, Paul Kohler, Property Law, Cambridge University Press, →ISBN, page 52:
      The archetypical fungible is money: if I drop a £1 coin in the street it is a matter of indifference to me whether I pick up that coin or another £1 coin lying next to it.

References

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  1. ^ Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “fungible”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.

Further reading

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Anagrams

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Catalan

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Etymology

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Borrowed from Medieval Latin fungibilis.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

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fungible m or f (masculine and feminine plural fungibles)

  1. fungible

Further reading

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German

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Pronunciation

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Adjective

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fungible

  1. inflection of fungibel:
    1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
    2. strong nominative/accusative plural
    3. weak nominative all-gender singular
    4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

Spanish

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Etymology

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From Latin fungī (“to perform”). Cognate with fungible.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /funˈxible/ [fũŋˈxi.β̞le]
  • Rhymes: -ible
  • Syllabification: fun‧gi‧ble

Adjective

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fungible m or f (masculine and feminine plural fungibles)

  1. fungible, expendable, consumable (exchangeable)
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Further reading

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