sable
/ˈseɪbəl/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.99 in modern English
7
Scrabble Score
5
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A small carnivorous mammal of the Old World that resembles a weasel, Martes zibellina, from cold regions in Eurasia and the North Pacific islands, valued for its dark brown fur.
Countable
Example Sentences
- ""Ye must avenge my sister's son's death; I will sables and martins bestow.""
- "Lovers dallied upon divans spread with sables."
- "I ſee its Sables wove by Deſtiny."
- "[…]a delighted shout from the children swung him toward the door again. His sister, Mrs. Gerard, stood there in carriage gown and sables, radiant with surprise. ¶ "Phil! You! Exactly like you, Philip, to come strolling in from the antipodes—dear fellow!" recovering from the fraternal embrace and holding both lapels of his coat in her gloved hands."
- "When I behold the violet past prime, And sable curls all silver'd o'er with white"
- "Night, sable goddess! from her ebon throne, / In rayless majesty, now stretches forth / Her leaden sceptre o'er a slumbering world."
Etymology
Attested since 1275, from Middle English sable, from Old French sable and martre sable (“sable marten”), in reference to the animal or its fur; from Medieval Latin sabelum, from Middle Low German sabel (compare Middle Dutch sabel, Middle High German zobel, whence German Zobel); ultimately from a Slavic word (compare Russian со́боль (sóbolʹ), Polish soból, Czech sobol). Compare also Middle Persian smwl (*samōr).