The quality or state of being capable of being animated or given life; the potential to be brought to life or consciousness.
From 'animable' (able to be animated) plus the suffix '-ity.' Animable comes from Latin 'anima' (soul/life) with the suffix '-able' (capable of), creating a theoretical quality.
This is a philosophical word that medieval scholastics loved—they debated which things had 'animability' and thus souls, which is why stones and plants got left out of moral consideration for centuries.
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