Dictionary

earnable en · ADJ

Etymology

From earn + -able.

Meanings

1. (not-comparable) Capable of being earned.

Deriveds

unearnable

earnable en · NOUN

Etymology

From earn + -able.

Meanings

1. Something that can be earned, especially a reward for good behavior.
   • What Ferdinand would hoard, she circulates. He fastens on the absolutes of ascriptive identity; the duchess, on the earnables of achieved character. 1996, Frank Whigham, Seizures of the Will in Early Modern English Drama, page 201:
   • However, it was recognized by Prison Service Headquarters that not all of these 'key earnables' would be relevant in all prisons (for example, all women prisoners already wore their own clothes, and there were no plans to change this; long-term prisoners in conditions of maximum security could not expect community visits). 2003, Lucia Zedner, Andrew Ashworth, The Criminological Foundations of Penal Policy, page 120:
   • In the past, I have had the most success with "earnables," which involve structured free time and normally scheduled activities (e.g., working on a special project. A teacher should avoid buying the child out with edibles and material rewards (which soon lose their effectiveness or become too costly), and establish a firm time period(s) for reinforcement delivery that is not too distant from the work period ( i.e., avoid home-based or after-school consequences when possible — these children are impulsive and have inadequate delay skills!) . 1988, Vincent B. Van Hasselt, Phillip S. Strain, Michel Hersen, Handbook of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, page 304:

Forms