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Glite Dictionary
stainable

stainable

6.2
Can take up a dye for viewing under a microscope
  • adjective
  • /ˈsteɪnəbl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : tintable
  • The technician used a stainable slide to highlight the details of the microscopic structures.

Examples

  • You think she'd like to buy a handmade, stainable teak boat?

    Must Love Dogs (2005)

  • The scientist prepared a sample with a stainable cell to observe under the microscope.

  • For the experiment, we needed stainable tissue samples to analyze the reaction to the dye.

Synonyms

colorable
vsstainable
  • US
5.8

Able to take dye or paint

refers specifically to cell parts taking dye for microscopic examination

Antonyms

stainproof
3.6

A thing that does not easily get marks from food or drink

How Stainable

stained
1 2.6
stainable
  • Specialized
6.2

Surface Forms

stainable positive

Morphology

stainable = stain (transparent) = stain + able

Standard adjective formed by adding '-able' to the verb 'stain'; meaning 'able to be stained' is directly derived and clear to learners.

Etymology

The word stainable comes from the simple word stain, meaning a mark or 'colour' on something, plus the ending -able, which means 'can be'. So stainable means 'can be stained', for example cells that take up dye and show colour under a microscope.