yah, so basically Doctor Nick (from the Simpsons) is operating on a patient, when something burning flys through the windows, landing next to a cylinder of gas.
and Nick say “Dont worry, its inflamable”, next thing the whole building explodes…
and i think … dumbass, Inflamable mean it does burn
but i think again … aint he right there?
Indistinguishable means u cant tell it apart from somthing
Indefinable means u cant define it
so basically
In means “not”
whatever means whatever we are talking about
Able means “able”
So why did doctor Nicks hospital get burned to the ground???
Or is this worth of a great debate?
The prefix “in” can also be an intensifier, as in invaluable (I know it’s confusing). “Inflamable” means very flamable, “non-flamable” means not flamable.
Inflammable is one of those words (sometimes called “Janus words”) that can carry opposite meanings, like cleave, dust, and ravel. Its original primary meaning was "capable of burning easily,’ but (IIRC) because of the confusion caused by people seeing the prefix “in” to mean “not,” the word “flammable” was created for clarity.
The Simpsons writers took advantage of the double meaning. It’s a joke, son.
Why your example works to an extent, the “in” in invaluable (how’s that for a triple in?) can also mean “not” - as in it is impossible to value it. The same meaning as priceless.
I think it’s probably from the fact that the word is more like inflamm-able than it is in-flammable.
Flammable is a contrived word, created because of the confusion associated with inflammable, as stated above. So it doesn’t make sense for the word inflammable to have been created to mean “not flammable” when the word flammable didn’t exist yet!
I think of it as “able to be inflamed,” thus “inflamm-able.” Inflame is a word unto itself, and adding “-able” makes it inflammable.
