Incapable

How to spell incapable

9 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce incapable

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does incapable mean?

1. adjectiveLacking the ability, skill, or power to do something.

Incapable in a sentence

• After the injury he was incapable of lifting anything heavy.

• The old printer is incapable of handling glossy paper.

Where does incapable come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb capere, which literally meant 'to take, seize, or hold'. From that root came the late Latin adjective capabilis, 'able to hold or grasp', and prefixing it with the negative in- produced incapabilis, 'not able to hold or take in'. English picked the word up in the late 1500s, borrowing it through French incapable, and the early sense leaned on the idea of a vessel or mind that could not contain or grasp something. Over time the meaning settled into the modern one: lacking the ability to do a thing. The same capere root quietly underlies a large family of relatives such as 'capable', 'capacity', 'capture', and even 'receive', so the central -cap- spelling is a reliable anchor once you recognise that shared ancestor.

How the word is built

• in- (not)
• cap (from Latin capere: to take, hold)
• -able (able to be)