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View synonyms for able

able

1

[ ey-buhl ]

adjective

, a·bler, a·blest.
  1. having necessary power, skill, resources, or qualifications; qualified:

    able to lift a two-hundred-pound weight; able to write music; able to travel widely; able to vote.

    Synonyms: fitted, fit

    Antonyms: incompetent

  2. having unusual or superior intelligence, skill, etc.:

    an able leader.

    Synonyms: ingenious, clever, skilled, talented

  3. showing talent, skill, or knowledge:

    an able speech.

    Synonyms: apt

  4. legally empowered, qualified, or authorized.


noun

  1. Usually Able. a code word formerly used in communications to represent the letter A.

-able

2
  1. a suffix meaning “capable of, susceptible of, fit for, tending to, given to,” associated in meaning with the word able, occurring in loanwords from Latin ( laudable ); used in English as a highly productive suffix to form adjectives by addition to stems of any origin ( teachable; photographable ).

-able

1

suffix forming adjectives

  1. capable of, suitable for, or deserving of (being acted upon as indicated)

    separable

    enjoyable

    pitiable

    washable

    readable

  2. inclined to; given to; able to; causing

    comfortable

    variable

    reasonable

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


able

2

/ ˈeɪbəl /

adjective

  1. postpositive having the necessary power, resources, skill, time, opportunity, etc, to do something

    able to swim

  2. capable; competent; talented

    an able teacher

  3. law qualified, competent, or authorized to do some specific act
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • -ably, suffix:forming_adverbs
  • -ability, suffix:forming_nouns
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Other Words From

  • over·able adjective
  • over·ab·ly adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of able1

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin habilis “handy,” equivalent to hab(ēre) “to have, hold” + -ilis adjective suffix; -ile

Origin of able2

Middle English < Old French < Latin -ābilis, equivalent to -ā- final vowel of 1st conjugation v. stems + -bilis
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Word History and Origins

Origin of able1

via Old French from Latin -ābilis, -ībilis, forms of -bilis, adjectival suffix

Origin of able2

C14: ultimately from Latin habilis easy to hold, manageable, apt, from habēre to have, hold + -ilis -ile
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Synonym Study

Able, capable, competent all mean possessing adequate power for doing something. Able implies power equal to effort required: able to finish in time. Capable implies power to meet or fulfill ordinary requirements: a capable worker. Competent suggests power to meet demands in a completely satisfactory manner: a competent nurse.
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Example Sentences

That’s something this president has never been able to understand about the strength of the nation … One way to pull the strength of the nation together in a moment of crisis is to remind people we’re all in it together.

“This creates a substantial possibility that many voters will be disenfranchised and the states may not be able to effectively, timely, accurately determine election outcomes,” he said.

What I eat is less important than being able to keep eating, because what I’m after is food that lets me fidget — food that asks for a little effort, but not enough to require all my focus.

From Eater

As of now, over 198 million Americans who are eligible to vote would be able to cast a ballot by mail.

He has been able to weather the closure and the reduction in business, but said he blew through savings.

GIF-able when he goes jogging in sweatpants, if you know what I mean.

The total “reality” that Kim offered to her fans made her brand incredibly popular, but it also made her so entirely mock-able.

The smallest version is backpack-able, the largest can carry a small radar, and all have endurance unlimited by fuel.

“This strategy seemed do-able and brilliant,” Salem nonetheless wrote of the scuttled scheme in his self-review.

Able-bodied people rarely notice the barriers that riddle the world which keep the disabled from participating in society.

It is followed by forty-four pages of argument and illustration relating exclusively to the able-bodied wage-earner.

The wonder is that between sword and halter there was any able-bodied man left in Munster.

As in the Report itself, no definition is given in the Act of what was meant by "able-bodied persons."

We can find no explanation of, or reason for, the entire absence of any provision for independent women who were able-bodied.

The outdoor relief sanctioned for able-bodied men was strictly limited to persons who were not in employment for hire.

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ablazeable-bodied