STABLE


Meaning of STABLE in English

I. sta ‧ ble 1 W3 AC /ˈsteɪb ə l/ BrE AmE adjective

[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: estable , from Latin stabilis , from stare 'to stand' ]

1 . steady and not likely to move or change OPP unstable ⇨ stability :

A wide base will make the structure much more stable.

in a stable condition British English in stable condition American English :

He is said to be in a stable condition in hospital.

Children like a stable environment.

2 . calm, reasonable, and not easy to upset OPP unstable ⇨ stability :

He was clearly not a very stable person.

3 . technical a stable substance tends to stay in the same chemical or ↑ atomic state OPP unstable

—stably adverb

II. stable 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]

[ Date: 1200-1300 ; Language: Old French ; Origin: estable , from Latin stabulum , from stare ; ⇨ ↑ stable 1 ]

1 . a building where horses are kept

2 . stables [plural] a place where horses are kept and that often gives riding lessons

3 . a group of racing horses that has one owner or trainer

4 . a group of people working for the same company or with the same trainer:

actors from the same Hollywood stable

5 . shut/close the stable door after the horse has bolted British English to try to prevent something when it is too late and harm has already been done

III. stable 3 BrE AmE verb [transitive]

to put or keep a horse in a stable

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English.      Longman - Словарь современного английского языка.