Showing results for "enabling"

• present participle of enable.

enabling

American  

[en-ey-bling] / ɛnˈeɪ blɪŋ /

adjective

Law.

1. conferring additional legal powers or capacities, especially by removing a barrier to action, suspending required permission, or relaxing oversight: enabling power.

   an enabling act;

   enabling power.

---

Etymology

Origin of enabling

First recorded in 1670–80; enable + -ing ²

Explanation

Enabling is a term used for laws that confer legal powers to someone or something. An enabling act makes it possible for authorities to take action. One meaning of the verb enable is "to provide with legal powers," so the adjective formed by adding -ing gets used to describe legislation that has that empowering effect. When new American states were formed out of frontier territories, they could either organize statehood themselves, or they could be admitted into the Union through an "enabling act" of Congress.

Example Sentences

Modular’s platform is aimed at enabling developers and companies to deploy AI models efficiently across various types of hardware.

From Barron's • Jun. 23, 2026

The researchers plan to focus on improving charging performance at low temperatures, with the goal of enabling safer and more efficient charging below 0°C.

From Science Daily • Jun. 21, 2026

Helping out an adult child is not necessarily enabling them.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 19, 2026

Baseten provides software and computing capacity for open-source models, enabling customers to reduce AI costs.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

On the sides are hand grips enabling one to shift them about.

From "All Quiet on the Western Front: A Novel" by Erich Maria Remarque

Related Words

• permissive