ABLE

able

(adjective) (usually followed by ‘to’) having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something; “able to swim”; “she was able to program her computer”; “we were at last able to buy a car”; “able to get a grant for the project”

able

(adjective) having inherent physical or mental ability or capacity; “able to learn”; “human beings are able to walk on two feet”; “Superman is able to leap tall buildings”

able, capable

(adjective) have the skills and qualifications to do things well; “able teachers”; “a capable administrator”; “children as young as 14 can be extremely capable and dependable”

able, able-bodied

(adjective) having a strong healthy body; “an able seaman”; “every able-bodied young man served in the army”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

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Etymology 1

Adjective

able (comparative abler, superlative ablest)

(obsolete) Easy to use. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the mid 18^th century.]

(obsolete) Suitable; competent. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the late 18^th century.]

(obsolete, dialectal) Liable to. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]

Having the necessary powers or the needed resources to accomplish a task. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]

Free from constraints preventing completion of task; permitted to; not prevented from. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]

(obsolete, dialectal) Having the physical strength; robust; healthy. [First attested from around (1350 to 1470).]

(obsolete) Rich; well-to-do. [Attested from the mid 16^th century until the late 19^th century.]

Gifted with skill, intelligence, knowledge, or competence. [First attested in the mid 16^th century.]

(law) Legally qualified or competent. [First attested in the early 18^th century.]

(nautical) Capable of performing all the requisite duties; as an able seaman. [First attested in the late 18^th century.]

Usage notes

• In standard English, one is "able to do something". In some older texts representing various dialects, "able for do something" is found instead, and in some Caribbean dialects "able with" is sometimes found.

Synonyms

• See also skillful

Etymology 2

Verb

able (third-person singular simple present ables, present participle abling, simple past and past participle abled)

(transitive, obsolete) To make ready. [Attested from around (1150 to 1350) until the late 16^th century.]

(transitive, obsolete) To make capable; to enable. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the late 19^th century.]

(transitive, obsolete) To dress. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the late 15^th century.]

(transitive, obsolete) To give power to; to reinforce; to confirm. [Attested from around (1350 to 1470) until the mid 17^th century.]

(transitive, obsolete) To vouch for; to guarantee. [Attested from the late 16^th century until the early 17^th century.]

• vi

Etymology 3

Noun

able (uncountable)

(military) The letter "A" in Navy Phonetic Alphabet.

Anagrams

• Abel, Bale, Beal, Blea, Ebla, Elba, albe, bael, bale, beal, blea

Proper noun

Able (plural Ables)

A surname.

Statistics

• According to the 2010 United States Census, Able is the 12766^th most common surname in the United States, belonging to 2417 individuals. Able is most common among White (70.83%) and Black/African American (22.18%) individuals.

Anagrams

• Abel, Bale, Beal, Blea, Ebla, Elba, albe, bael, bale, beal, blea

Source: Wiktionary

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A"ble, a. [Comp. Abler; superl. Ablest.] Etym: [OF. habile, L. habilis that may be easily held or managed, apt, skillful, fr. habere to have, hold. Cf. Habile and see Habit.]

1. Fit; adapted; suitable. [Obs.] A many man, to ben an abbot able. Chaucer.

2. Having sufficient power, strength, force, skill, means, or resources of any kind to accomplish the object; possessed of qualifications rendering competent for some end; competent; qualified; capable; as, an able workman, soldier, seaman, a man able to work; a mind able to reason; a person able to be generous; able to endure pain; able to play on a piano.

3. Specially: Having intellectual qualifications, or strong mental powers; showing ability or skill; talented; clever; powerful; as, the ablest man in the senate; an able speech. No man wrote abler state papers. Macaulay.

4. (Law)

Definition: Legally qualified; possessed of legal competence; as, able to inherit or devise property.

Note: Able for, is Scotticism. "Hardly able for such a march." Robertson.

Syn.

– Competent; qualified; fitted; efficient; effective; capable; skillful; clever; vigorous; powerful.

A"ble, v. t. Etym: [See Able, a.] [Obs.]

1. To make able; to enable; to strengthen. Chaucer.

2. To vouch for. "I 'll able them." Shak.

*a*ble. Etym: [F. -able, L. -abilis.]

Definition: An adjective suffix now usually in a passive sense; able to be; fit to be; expressing capacity or worthiness in a passive sense; as, movable, able to be moved; amendable, able to be amended; blamable, fit to be blamed; salable.

Note: The form ible is used in the same sense.

Note: It is difficult to say when we are not to use -able instead of -ible. "Yet a rule may be laid down as to when we are to use it. To all verbs, then, from the Anglo-Saxon, to all based on the uncorrupted infinitival stems of Latin verbs of the first conjugation, and to all substantives, whencesoever sprung, we annex - able only." Fitzed. Hall.

*a*ble. Etym: [F. -able, L. -abilis.]

Definition: An adjective suffix now usually in a passive sense; able to be; fit to be; expressing capacity or worthiness in a passive sense; as, movable, able to be moved; amendable, able to be amended; blamable, fit to be blamed; salable.

Note: The form ible is used in the same sense.

Note: It is difficult to say when we are not to use -able instead of -ible. "Yet a rule may be laid down as to when we are to use it. To all verbs, then, from the Anglo-Saxon, to all based on the uncorrupted infinitival stems of Latin verbs of the first conjugation, and to all substantives, whencesoever sprung, we annex - able only." Fitzed. Hall.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition

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