Enable

How to spell enable

6 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce enable

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does enable mean?

1. verbTo give someone or something the means, power, or opportunity to do something.

Enable in a sentence

• The grant will enable the charity to expand its services.

• These tools enable remote teams to collaborate in real time.

Where does enable come from?

Language of origin: Latin

Enable is a fairly transparent English coinage built from the prefix en-, which comes through Old French from the Latin in-, meaning 'to put into' or 'to make', and the adjective 'able', which descends from the Latin habilis, meaning 'easy to handle' or 'fit'. The verb appeared in English in the late 1400s with the literal sense of making someone able or giving them the power or means to do something. The prefix en- is the same one that turns nouns and adjectives into verbs of causation elsewhere, as in 'enrich', 'enlarge', and 'endanger', all of which mean to put something into a state. Over the centuries 'enable' broadened from formal grants of legal authority to everyday talk of making any action possible, and in the computing age it took on the very specific meaning of switching a feature on. The spelling is reassuringly regular: simply join the prefix en- straight onto 'able' with no doubling and no dropped letters.

How the word is built

• en- (to make, put into)
• able (capable, fit)