able

[ ey-buhl ]

See synonyms for: able ablest on Thesaurus.com

adjective,a·bler, a·blest.

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.
having unusual or superior intelligence, skill, etc.: an able leader.

showing talent, skill, or knowledge: an able speech.
legally empowered, qualified, or authorized.

noun

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

Origin of able

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

synonym study For able

1. 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.

Other words for able

1	fit, fitted
2	talented; skilled, clever, ingenious
3	apt

See synonyms for able on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for able

1	incompetent

See antonyms for able on Thesaurus.com

Other words from able

o·ver·a·ble, adjective
o·ver·a·b·ly, adverb

Other definitions for -able (2 of 2)

-able

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).

Origin of -able

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

Also -ble, -ible.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use able in a sentence

We are flattered by the suggestion of our Correspondent, but we must leave the agitation which he suggests to abler hands.
Notes and Queries, Number 178, March 26, 1853 | Various
I will confess to you I have thought myself hitherto an abler master to instil vice than to teach virtue.
The love letters of Abelard and Heloise | Peter Abelard
To try to describe the beauties of all the suburbs of Florence would require an abler pen than mine.
From the Thames to the Tiber | J. Wardle
The abler speakers were obliged to play to the gallery, and take a sentimental and sensational line.
The Outline of History: Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind | Herbert George Wells
Let us add to what has been written above a short passage from an abler and far more authoritative pen.
The Outline of History: Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind | Herbert George Wells

British Dictionary definitions for able (1 of 2)

able

/ (ˈeɪbəl) /

adjective

(postpositive) having the necessary power, resources, skill, time, opportunity, etc, to do something: able to swim
capable; competent; talented: an able teacher

law qualified, competent, or authorized to do some specific act

Origin of able

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

British Dictionary definitions for -able (2 of 2)

-able

suffix forming adjectives

capable of, suitable for, or deserving of (being acted upon as indicated): enjoyable; pitiable; readable; separable; washable
inclined to; given to; able to; causing: comfortable; reasonable; variable

Origin of -able

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

Derived forms of -able

-ably, suffix forming adverbs
-ability, suffix forming nouns

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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