inability
Americannoun
-
inabilities
plural
noun
Synonym Usage
See disability.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of inability
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English inabilite, from Medieval Latin inhabilitās; equivalent to in- 3 + ability
Explanation
An inability refers to lacking the capacity to do something. A deaf person has an inability to hear. If you know that abilities are things people can do — like the ability of a basketball player to dunk the ball — then you might already have figured out that an inability is something a person cannot do. Most people have an inability to dunk a basketball. People who eat too much have an inability to resist food. Often, this word refers to having mental limitations: an inability to think or figure something out. We all have different abilities and inabilities.
Vocabulary lists containing inability
Dealing with Dragons
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"Ellen West" by Frank Bidart
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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.
See Examples For:
In a prevention of future deaths report James Bennett, a coroner for Herefordshire, said the inability for police forces to provide round-the-clock specialist search officers was being impeded by a lack of training provision.
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026
In this series, he has two hits and two strikeouts in eight at-bats, and his inability to refrain from swinging at pitches outside the strike zone has become a glaring weakness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
When I told one doctor about my inability to focus, she suggested a peptide called Semax as well as oral oxytocin, neither of which is FDA-approved.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
He diagnosed France’s fiscal problem quite simply – an inability to grow the economy.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 1, 2026
With the inability to communicate overcome, she’s functioning again.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
But the frustration is that Australia, at times, have not outplayed England - instead, they have been gifted opportunities to win by England's inabilities to do the basics, like catching the ball.
From BBC ● Feb. 2, 2025
But the rollout of aid has been slow, partly reflecting the Haitian government’s own inabilities to oversee and coordinate it, an echo of the problems following the 2010 quake.
From New York Times ● Aug. 16, 2021
Hewitt’s own inabilities aside, the actress can at least play the part.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 18, 2018
But these inabilities do not exceed the corporeal: physical growth is not a metaphor for emotional growth.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 31, 2018
The modern isms must be viewed with consideration, for there are many impostors concealing their inabilities by flocking to these less understood fields.
From Visual Illusions Their Causes, Characteristics and Applications by Matthew Luckiesh
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.
