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Ability - 5 dictionary results

a⋅bil⋅i⋅ty

  [uh-bil-i-tee]
Use Ability in a Sentence
–noun, plural -ties.
1. power or capacity to do or act physically, mentally, legally, morally, financially, etc.
2. competence in an activity or occupation because of one's skill, training, or other qualification: the ability to sing well.
3. abilities, talents; special skills or aptitudes: Composing music is beyond his abilities.
Origin:
1350–1400; ME (h)abilite < MF < L habilitās aptitude, equiv. to habili(s) handy (see able ) + -tās -ty 2 ; r. ME ablete < OF < L, as above

Synonyms:
1. capability; proficiency, expertness, dexterity. 2. Ability, faculty, talent denote qualifications or powers. Ability is a general word for power, native or acquired, enabling one to do things well: a person of great ability; ability in mathematics. Faculty denotes a natural ability for a particular kind of action: a faculty of saying what he means. Talent is often used to mean a native ability or aptitude in a special field: a talent for music or art.

-ability

 
a combination of -able and -ity, found on nouns corresponding to adjectives in -able: capability.
Origin:
ME -abilite ≪ L -ābilitās
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Ability
a·bil·i·ty   (ə-bĭl'ĭ-tē)   
n.   pl. a·bil·i·ties
  1. The quality of being able to do something, especially the physical, mental, financial, or legal power to accomplish something.
  2. A natural or acquired skill or talent.
  3. The quality of being suitable for or receptive to a specified treatment; capacity: the ability of a computer to be configured for use as a file server. See Usage Note at able.

[Middle English abilite, from Old French habilite, from Latin habilitās, from habilis, handy; see able.]
Synonyms: These nouns denote qualities that enable a person to achieve or accomplish something. Ability is the mental or physical power to do something: "To make a fortune some assistance from fate is essential. Ability alone is insufficient" (Ihara Saikaku).
Capacity refers to the potential for acquiring that power: "The capability [women] have shown in the realm of higher education, their achievements in the business world, their capacity for organization . . . have been a revelation" (Susan B. Anthony).
Faculty denotes an inherent ability: My lawyer has a faculty for detecting hypocrisy.
Talent emphasizes inborn ability, especially in the arts: "There is no substitute for talent. Industry and all the virtues are of no avail" (Aldous Huxley).
Skill stresses ability acquired or developed through experience: "The intellect, character and skill possessed by any man are the product of certain original tendencies and the training which they have received" (Edward L. Thorndike).
Competence suggests the ability to do something satisfactorily but not necessarily outstandingly: The violinist played the concerto with unquestioned competence but limited imagination.
Aptitude implies inherent capacity for learning, understanding, or performing: "She handled her brushes with a certain ease and freedom which came, not from long and close acquaintance with them, but from a natural aptitude" (Kate Chopin).
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Ability

A*bil"i*ty\, n.; pl. Abilities. [F. habilet['e], earlier spelling habilit['e] (with silent h), L. habilitas aptitude, ability, fr. habilis apt. See Able.] The quality or state of being able; power to perform, whether physical, moral, intellectual, conventional, or legal; capacity; skill or competence in doing; sufficiency of strength, skill, resources, etc.; -- in the plural, faculty, talent.

Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren. --Acts xi. 29.

Natural abilities are like natural plants, that need pruning by study. --Bacon.

The public men of England, with much of a peculiar kind of ability. --Macaulay.

Syn: Capacity; talent; cleverness; faculty; capability; efficiency; aptitude; aptness; address; dexterity; skill.

Usage: Ability, Capacity. These words come into comparison when applied to the higher intellectual powers. Ability has reference to the active exercise of our faculties. It implies not only native vigor of mind, but that ease and promptitude of execution which arise from mental training. Thus, we speak of the ability with which a book is written, an argument maintained, a negotiation carried on, etc. It always something to be done, and the power of doing it. Capacity has reference to the receptive powers. In its higher exercises it supposes great quickness of apprehension and breadth of intellect, with an uncommon aptitude for acquiring and retaining knowledge. Hence it carries with it the idea of resources and undeveloped power. Thus we speak of the extraordinary capacity of such men as Lord Bacon, Blaise Pascal, and Edmund Burke. "Capacity," says H. Taylor, "is requisite to devise, and ability to execute, a great enterprise." The word abilities, in the plural, embraces both these qualities, and denotes high mental endowments.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : Ability
Spanish: capacidad,
German: die Fähigkeit,
Japanese: 能力
More Translations »

ability 
c.1380, from O.Fr. ableté "expert at handling (something)," from L. habilitatem (nom. habilitas) "aptitude," from habilis "easy to manage, handy" (see able). One case where a silent L. -h- failed to make a return in Eng. (despite efforts of 16c.-17c. scholars); see H.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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