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able

[ey-buhl]

adjective

having necessary power, skill, resources, or qualifications; qualified: able to lift a two-hundred-pound weight; able to write music; able to travel widely; able to vote.

having unusual or superior intelligence, skill, etc.: an able leader.

showing talent, skill, or knowledge: an able speech.

legally empowered, qualified, or authorized.

noun

(usually initial capital letter) a code word formerly used in communications to represent the letter A.

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Able is always a great word to know.

So is gobo. Does it mean:

a gadget; dingus; thingumbob.

a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.

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Origin:
1275–1325; Middle English < Middle French < Latin habilis handy, equivalent to hab(ēre) to have, hold + -ilis -ile

Related forms

o·ver·a·ble, adjective

o·ver·a·b·ly, adverb

Synonyms
1. fit, fitted. Able, capable, competent all mean possessing adequate power for doing something. Able implies power equal to effort required: able to finish in time. Capable implies power to meet or fulfill ordinary requirements: a capable worker. Competent suggests power to meet demands in a completely satisfactory manner: a competent nurse. 2. talented; skilled, clever, ingenious. 3. apt.

Antonyms
1. incompetent.

Example Sentences

If it is true that all truths are discoverable by hard science, then hard science should be able to discover that to be true.

He asked the home secretary to confirm that those students would continue to be able to work.

But being able to feel a bit better-off than someone else makes it a bit more bearable.

EXPAND

If it is true that all truths are discoverable by hard science, then hard science should be able to discover that to be true.

He asked the home secretary to confirm that those students would continue to be able to work.

But being able to feel a bit better-off than someone else makes it a bit more bearable.

If students are not yet able to write, have them draw pictures of the mummies and share their pictures in small groups.

Researchers say they may soon be able to repair injured and worn-out cartilage with the help of nanotubes.

But someone who knows more about this might be able to correct me.

Many families dream of owning a vacation home, but few are able to make that a reality.

For the first time, scientists were able to track an asteroid from space to the ground and recover pieces of it.

In a play loaded with clever words, the funniest scene is one about not being able to get any out.

The downside is that the academic has to be able to function in a highly regimented way, be able to write on a schedule, etc.

The more precise and unusual the request, the less people were able to resist it.

Troops able to hide themselves and their weapons will steal a march on the enemy.

Not being able to nurse and choosing not to ever nurse are two different things.

She wanted viewers to be able to invent their own stories to suit the scene, perhaps even insert themselves in it.

Finding humans hiding in a particular room is nice, but being able to tell them apart is even better.

She is able to breathe on her own, although she remains on a ventilator as a precaution.

The candidate needs to be goal driven and results oriented and be able to work well with our students and faculty.

The world will be able to do better in agriculture if the resources are sync all around the world.

Neandertals had big mouths that they were able to open unusually wide, new research has determined.

In government laboratories and elsewhere, scientists are seeking a drug able to prolong life and youthful vigor.

Be able to get away from the stinking city life and all the hate.

Plants that grow on city rooftops need to be able to stand up to constant sunlight and harsh winds.

He should now be able to understand speech more clearly, especially in noisy environments.

Seeking faculty who are able to teach multiple courses at the undergraduate and master's level.

Firms should be able to choose who they employee regardless of race, creed, color or union status.

They are able to cross entire oceans without great loss of energy.

Dogs may be able to understand far more words than a typical owner teaches them during obedience training.

At many excavation sites, paleontologists find more material than they are able to dig out during one field season.

So get going and soon you'll be able to try our garden caesar salad recipe.

Just by looking at photos, strangers were able to correctly peg the narcissism scores of subjects with excessive self-regard.

Must be a team-player and be able to function effectively in a team work-centered office.

Women are able to find their way onto shortlists for lower-paid, non-executive positions.

Moro was able to dig himself free and quickly helped his partners dig themselves out in a matter of minutes.

Scientists have known that nutritionally deprived bacteria are better able to resist the chemical blows dealt by antibiotics.

In a non-subsidized world, once fish stocks become depleted, fishers would no longer be able to earn a living.

Hefner was able to create a corridor and allow a person standing in the entryway to see through to the backyard.

On the other hand, owners of the original iPhone will be able to upgrade to the handset for the advertised cost.

The committee's leader must be able to invest sufficient time in the search.

It's the only way they'll be able to bring their economy back up and hopefully keep it there.

Agriculture led to cities and towns, as well as a new ecological environment that cats were able to exploit.

Researchers say that a specially designed device should be able to draw power from a strong magnetic field permeating a room.

When the perfect conditions occur, you'll be able to respond quickly.

And it means you may be able to finally snip that cable subscription once and for all.

Even if employers could be disciplined, countries would then need to be able to remove those who arrive illegally.

New research shows that tiny female parasitic wasps are able to change the smell of the plants they live in to attract a mate.

Scientists have reported that by bombarding a liquid with sound they were able to produce nuclear fusion in a tabletop apparatus.

If you aren't able to locate dry jack cheese, order from the maker.

To create any good picture, you must know your subject to be able to capture its essence.

Couples unable to conceive may soon be better able to pinpoint the cause of their problem.

The tree should be able to move an inch in either direction.

Despite the challenges and a few surprises, pronghorn were able to travel along their traditional migration routes.

And until now, scientists have not been able to closely track the transmission and mutation patterns of single strains.

Recipe alert for those gardeners lucky enough to be able to grow rhubarb.

Push the pedal, and the brain is less able to rewire itself.

It was warm enough and she was able to get it cleaned up before evening.

Monkeys may be able to devise gestures to communicate specific ideas.

After a while inside, your lenses will clear and you'll be able to photograph whatever you want.

All the crying is because some people want the right to be able to drive tanks around on the roads, to and from work.

If you stop at her place early, you might be able to buy a dozen before you leave.

More disconcerting, he may not be able to conduct anything remotely resembling a normal conversation.

We might actually be able to do a tiny bit of good in the world.

Label each pair so you'll be able to easily match them later.

Even in cases where people were without power, many were still able to communicate, thanks to battery-powered mobile devices.

Must be able to work with limited supervision and handle multiple tasks.

In practice, the results mean that you might soon be able to buy roses sporting soft petals all the way up the stem.

They form a vortex from which no ship has ever been able to escape.

Vegetable dips you won't be able to stop eating and hey, you don't have to.

The experiments offer hope that people with impaired movements may be able to better control their world.

The days you have lab, you may not be able to eat any solid food afterward.

It should be able to locate other potentially habitable planets and help us understand how they were formed.

Able to propose data models for simple software packages.

However, for a number of years researchers have been investigating materials that might be able to provide such protection.

As the human brain evolved, humans were able to laugh before they could speak, according to a new study.

Despite its size, however, this sauropod was able to hide in the collections of.

Of course so far we're only able to do so with a minimal amount of glide.

They were able to get the financial reform through.

Added to teaching programs it will be able to help such software work out whether the lessons being proferred have been learned.

Here you can experience them all in one spot-something you'd probably never be able to do in the wild.

By unraveling the mysteries of aging, scientists may be able to make our lives longer and healthier.

MicroGen is developing small batteries that are able to create energy from the slightest vibration.

The important part, that you might not be able to read,.

He and his colleagues were able to implant satellite transmitters in bar-tailed godwits and track their flight.

Not only are they able to direct students, but they basically get your research started because they need less training.

It is less able to debate the issues that matter, because important actors may be missing.

People said it would never work-that viewers would not be able to follow it.

In arid regions, people may be able to harvest water from fog.

Candidates must be able to present evidence of teaching and research publications excellence.

Discrimination might be easier for economists to understand if they were able to measure it.

We should also be able to trace the relationship between genetic and linguistic diversity.

Scientists were able to confirm that theropods' palms faced each other.

They are strong and durable, able to withstand vehicular traffic.

When that happens, trees will still be able to sprout clones from their root tips, but they won't be able to make seeds.

Those who don't, however, would be able to shop elsewhere.

Lateral moves only work if you are able to develop experience in your first job that will help you get the second job.

Nor will it be able to cut interest rates to aid its debt-laden households and businesses.

Only when the snow melted would they be able to get back across the mountains.

New study may explain why marketers are able to exploit our sense of adventure and fascination with things.

Second, you may be able to build one that is even more hospitable to intelligence than this one.

Many have not been able to take advantage of study opportunities because they haven't been able to secure the necessary visas.

The receiver should be able to detect an eavesdropper and take appropriate countermeasures.

We may be able to get a glimpse of what happened before the big bang, thanks to a new study-but only a glimpse.

Third, you may be able to move into the new universes you create.

You'll be able to enjoy the brightly colored hips during autumn, and.

The plus side is that you will be able to save money if that is your goal.

Thousands were able to flee while the eruption was in progress, and their footprints were pressed into the ash as they went.

John enjoys that a portion of this income is tax-free and he was able to claim a tax deduction the year he made his gift.

Schultz--that he would be able to say good-bye to physical chemistry and immerse.

We don't know enough to be able to tell you what you should.

But in order to plug a leak you have to be able to find it.

And in a breakthrough combination of technologies, scientists are able to peer inside a fighter's body in real.

New details are emerging about how the process is able to exploit the strange.

The pressures on it changed, and other species were better able to cope".

Faculty typically are able to save over half of their compensation.

But with new training techniques and research he thinks they will be able to cope.

These people were able to feel hot and cold, sense pressure, and could tell sharp objects touching their skin from blunt ones.

No one was ever able to reproduce the results of that study, and the paper has since been retracted by the journal.

While you used to be able to add leaves to a table to expand it for company, many modern tables lack them.

You'll find out that you're able to do all sorts of things when you have to, especially for somebody you love.

He was also able to take a photograph of a latent fingerprint.

Until now no one has been able to pinpoint the exact nature of the blast.

Researchers originally used the term broadly but now they have been able to tease out two subsets of patients within a hierarchy:.

The team was even able to recover some protein sequences from this material.

If it's your browser, you should be able to add words to your own dictionary.

But they also have to be able to earn the money they need to invest in new aircraft, because younger fleets are more efficient.

Sharbat says she hopes that her girls will get the education she was never able to complete.

Or being able to grow, as advertised, those perfect pecs and abs.

Im glad that technology these days is able to help improve the world into a better place rather than abusing it.

But even at the last minute, they may be able to book you the meal of your dreams.

But many people don't find themselves in the happy position to be able to take such an expensive sabbatical.

The scientists weren't able to change the gender of worms.

It would be nice to be able to download the video for viewing.

If you have a drip irrigation system, you will be able to water many plants at one time.

Must be able to maintain confidentiality regarding business matters.

Using this system, the researchers realised that they might be able to copy the eel's electricity-generation mechanism.

The more information provided, the better you will be able to evaluate it.

COLLAPSE

Dictionary.com Unabridged

a suffix meaning “capable of, susceptible of, fit for, tending to, given to,” associated in meaning with the word able, occurring in loanwords from Latin (laudable); used in English as a highly productive suffix to form adjectives by addition to stems of any origin (teachable; photographable).

Also, -ble, -ible.

Origin:
Middle English < Old French < Latin -ābilis, equivalent to -ā- final vowel of 1st conjugation v. stems + -bilis

Link To able

Collins

World English Dictionary

able (ˈeɪb^əl)

—*adj*
1.	(postpositive) having the necessary power, resources, skill, time, opportunity, etc, to do something: able to swim
2.	capable; competent; talented: an able teacher
3.	law qualified, competent, or authorized to do some specific act

[C14: ultimately from Latin habilis easy to hold, manageable, apt, from habēre to have, hold + -ilis-ile]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

able

mid-14c., from O.Fr. (h)able, from L. habilis "easily handled, apt," verbal adj. from habere "to hold" (see habit). "Easy to be held," hence "fit for a purpose." The silent h- was dropped in Eng. and resisted academic attempts to restore it 16c.-17c., but some derivatives

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acquired it (e.g. habiliment, habilitate), via French.

"Able-whackets - A popular sea-game with cards, in which the loser is beaten over the palms of the hands with a handkerchief tightly twisted like a rope. Very popular with horny-fisted sailors." [Smyth, "Sailor's Word-Book," 1867]

-able

suffix expressing ability, capacity, fitness, from Fr., from L. -ibilis, -abilis, forming adjectives from verbs, from PIE *-tro-, a suffix used to form nouns of instrument. In L., infinitives in -are took -abilis, others -ibilis; in Eng., -able is used for native words, -ible for words of obvious L.

origin. The Latin suffix is not etymologically connected with able, but it long has been popularly associated with it, and this has contributed to its survival as a living suffix. It is related to the second syllable of rudder and saddle.

COLLAPSE

FOLDOC

Computing Dictionary

ABLE definition

language
A simple language for accountants.
["ABLE, The Accounting Language, Programming and Reference Manual," Evansville Data Proc Center, Evansville, IN, Mar 1975].
[Listed in SIGPLAN Notices 13(11):56 (Nov 1978)].
(1994-11-08)

American Heritage

Abbreviations & Acronyms

ABLE
Association for Biology Laboratory Education

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"Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?"

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