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• ability
  ability

  noun

  power or capacity to do or act physically, mentally, legally, morally, financially, etc.
• -ability
  -ability

  a combination of -able and -ity, found on nouns corresponding to adjectives ending in -able:

ability

¹ American  

[uh-bil-i-tee] / əˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

• abilities
  plural

1. power or capacity to do or act physically, mentally, legally, morally, financially, etc.

   Synonyms:

   dexterity, expertness, proficiency, capability

2. competence in an activity or occupation because of one's skill, training, or other qualification.

   the ability to sing well.

3. abilities, talents; special skills or aptitudes.

   Composing music is beyond his abilities.

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-ability ² American  

1. a combination of -able and -ity, found on nouns corresponding to adjectives ending in -able:

   capability.

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ability British  

/ əˈbɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. possession of the qualities required to do something; necessary skill, competence, or power

   the ability to cope with a problem

2. considerable proficiency; natural capability

   a man of ability

3. (plural) special talents

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Synonym Usage

Ability, faculty, talent denote qualifications or powers. Ability is a general word for power, native or acquired, enabling one to do things well: a person of great ability; ability in mathematics. Faculty denotes a natural ability for a particular kind of action: a faculty of saying what he means. Talent is often used to mean a native ability or aptitude in a special field: a talent for music or art.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subability
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• abilities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ability¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English (h)abilite, from Middle French, from Latin habilitās “aptitude,” equivalent to habili(s) “handy” ( see able) + -tās -ty ²; replacing Middle English ablete, from Old French, from Latin, as above

Origin of -ability²

Middle English -abilite, from French -abilité, from Latin -ābilitās (inflectional stem -ābilitāt- )

Compare meaning

How does ability compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• capability vs. ability

Explanation

Ability is skill or talent. You might have the ability to blow bubbles, or sing in a falsetto, or dance the waltz. Or, just maybe, you have the ability to do all three things at once. Impressive! From the Old French ablate "expert at handling (something)," and that from the Latin habilitatem, "aptitude," comes the English ability, a noun indicating the power to act, perform, or accomplish. Capacity is similar in meaning to ability, but note that people have a capacity for doing something, and an ability to do something.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ability abilities

Chief Executive Curtis Campbell said the results reflect improvements in the mix of H&R Block’s client base and evidence that testing and experimentation is accelerating the company’s ability to learn, adapt and scale.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

Parish said McNeil is "a player with proven ability in the Premier League".

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

"Rather than centralizing superintelligence, we should distribute it widely and give every person the ability to direct it," Zuckerberg wrote, arguing that open models are a key part of a global AI ecosystem.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

“We sincerely hope that this review is not merely a pretense for removing California’s ability to hold public hearings on offshore oil and gas projects,” said Kate Huckelbridge, executive director of the Coastal Commission.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

If it's damaged, you will lose the ability to speak.

From "Phineas Gage" by John Fleischman

Throughout her career, Houston earned the nickname of “The Voice” because of her unparalleled vocal abilities.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

"When we compare humans with other primates, we are looking at abilities that may have come from a common ancestor," Cuaya added.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Scientists may need to look beyond the abilities of individual sperm and pay greater attention to how group behavior affects reproductive outcomes.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026

The challenge is to learn how to benefit from a technology powerful enough to reshape our future without allowing it to replace the human abilities that make that future possible.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026

We assume that a large brain, the use of tools, superior learning abilities and complex social structures are huge advantages.

From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari

Related Words

• capability
• capacity
• competence
• intelligence
• qualification
• skill
• strength
• talent
• understanding