enabler
Americannoun
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a person or thing that enables something, or makes it possible.
Technology is a key enabler of efficiency and productivity.
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a person who enables or supports someone else’s bad or dysfunctional behavior.
His wife is an unwitting enabler who makes excuses for his drinking.
Usage
What does enabler mean? An enabler is someone who allows or makes it easier for someone to do what they shouldn’t. It’s especially used in the context of addiction and abuse.The verb enable is usually used in a positive or neutral way meaning to make possible or provide someone with the power, means, opportunity, or authority to do something.But the word enabler is almost always used in a critical way to refer to someone who allows, encourages, or makes it possible for another person to engage in behavior that’s harmful to others, such as abuse, or self-destructive, such as drug or alcohol abuse.For example, a parent who allows the other parent to abuse their children might be called an enabler.Example: He asked me to go out for one drink, but I don’t want to be an enabler, so I told him we could go to a movie instead.
Etymology
Origin of enabler
First recorded in 1610–20; 1975–80 enabler for def. 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Investors have simply been taking the view that the benefits accruing to the enablers and users would outweigh the costs to those disrupted,” he added.
From Barron's
Even the key enabler of today’s AI industry seems to agree.
“We continue to see AI as an enabler for the future so when it comes time for M&A, we look at how we can improve our footprint where we’re lacking presence.”
Van Eck is enthusiastic about semiconductors, cloud platforms, data-center infrastructure plays and other “enablers of compute.”
From MarketWatch
Malinche’s portrayal as a valiant Cortés enabler doesn’t seem to bother audiences, though some decry the work’s pro-Spanish take on the Conquest.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
