Able
adjectiveHaving the power, skill, means, or opportunity to do something.
How to spell able
4 letters · 2 syllables
How to pronounce able
Say the part in capitals loudest.
What does able mean?
- adjectiveHaving the power, skill, means, or opportunity to do something.
Able in a sentence
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After the training course she felt able to handle the new software.
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With the extra funding the team was finally able to finish the project.
Where does able come from?
Language of origin: Latin
The word traces back to the Latin habilis, meaning 'easy to handle', 'suitable', or 'fit for a purpose'. That adjective was built on the verb habere, meaning 'to have' or 'to hold', so the original idea was something you could readily get a grip on or manage. English picked it up in the 1300s through Old French, where it appeared as able or hable, and over time the sense narrowed from 'suitable' to 'having the power or skill to act'. The same habere root still lives inside familiar relatives such as 'habit', 'ability', and 'rehabilitate'. The very common suffix '-able', as in 'readable' or 'comfortable', grew out of this exact word, which is why it signals 'capable of' so reliably.
How the word is built
- abl- (from Latin habilis: easy to handle, suitable)
- -e
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