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arrestable

arrestable

1 4.4
Can be taken to a police station by police for a crime
  • adjective
  • /əˈrɛstəbl/
  • Formal
translation icon : detenible
  • The authorities informed the crowd that any unlawful gathering could lead to arrestable charges.
  • arrestable offense

Examples

  • Arrestable offenses gave us a direct power.

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  • Many actions, such as shoplifting, can be considered arrestable offenses under the law.

  • The lawyer explained that certain behaviors, like fighting in public, are clearly arrestable by authorities.

Surface Forms

arrestable positive

Morphology

arrestable = arrest (transparent) = arrest + able

Standard adjectival formation from the verb 'arrest' with the clear meaning 'liable to be arrested', which is directly inferable by learners who know the verb.

Etymology

Arrestable comes from the word arrest, which besides 'to stop' came to mean stopping a person by the police. So an arrestable offence is one where the law allows the police to arrest someone.