Dr. Les Reed

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Rorschach's Journal said:
Inflammable means flammable!? What a country! :emoticon-0102-bigsm
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You know, that has always befuddled me. I kind of knew that both terms meant the same, but if someone asked me to explain it, I couldn't. So I've looked it up.

They mean the same, but inflammable was the first used word was a correct term to use. However, it was thought that the 'in' in inflammable could be confused as a negative prefix, as in inescapable and invulnerable, so flammable started to be used. It then became the dominant word after around 1970 [so the explanation said], and inflammable was officially dropped. Of course, it lives on in people's speech and words.
 
TheSecondStain said:
You know, that has always befuddled me. I kind of knew that both terms meant the same, but if someone asked me to explain it, I couldn't. So I've looked it up.

They mean the same, but inflammable was the first used word was a correct term to use. However, it was thought that the 'in' in inflammable could be confused as a negative prefix, as in inescapable and invulnerable, so flammable started to be used. It then became the dominant word after around 1970 [so the explanation said], and inflammable was officially dropped. Of course, it lives on in people's speech and words.
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Inflammable is surely derived from inflame-able, meaning likely to burst into flame. You're right, they are two words that look like opposites but because of their different derivations mean the same thing.

The other example quoted, invaluable and valuable, have slightly different meanings. Valuable means something that is worthwhile, has a value. Whereas invaluable is the same as priceless, something which is so valuable you can't put a price on it.

Long live the subtle nuances of the English language!
 
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ChilcoSaint said:
Inflammable is surely derived from inflame-able, meaning likely to burst into flame. You're right, they are two words that look like opposites but because of their different derivations mean the same thing.

The other example quoted, invaluable and valuable, have slightly different meanings. Valuable means something that is worthwhile, has a value. Whereas invaluable is the same as priceless, something which is so valuable you can't put a price on it.

Long live the subtle nuances of the English language!
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Yep, inflammable is derived from inflame.

I didn't use the invaluable/valuable example as that was an explanation of differences. But it is a cute one because something that can be said to be priceless could also be said to be without worth or value because it can't be bought. I suppose this could have given Oscar Wilde a prompt for the description of someone he observed as knowing the price of everything but the value of nothing. :)
 
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