Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Amicable?

\Am"i*ca*ble\, a. [L. amicabilis, fr. amicus friend, fr. amare to love. See {Amiable}.] Friendly; proceeding from, or exhibiting, friendliness; after the manner of friends; peaceable; as, an amicable disposition, or arrangement. That which was most remarkable in this contest was . . . the amicable manner in which it was managed. --Prideoux. {Amicable action} (Law.), an action commenced and prosecuted by amicable consent of the parties, for the purpose of obtaining a decision of the court on some matter of law involved in it. --Bouvier. --Burrill. {Amicable numbers} (Math.), two numbers, each of which is equal to the sum of all the aliquot parts of the other. Syn: Friendly; peaceable; kind; harmonious. Usage: {Amicable}, {Friendly}. Neither of these words denotes any great warmth of affection, since friendly has by no means the same strength as its noun friendship. It does, however, imply something of real cordiality; while amicable supposes very little more than that the parties referred to are not disposed to quarrel. Hence, we speak of amicable relations between two countries, an amicable adjustment of difficulties. ``Those who entertain friendly feelings toward each other can live amicably together.''