English Reference
Noun

ableness

n.
C1 Advanced able·ness

n.the quality of being able to do something. It is an old-fashioned word that people rarely use in modern conversation.

n.the state or quality of being capable of performing a task or achieving a result.


SIMPLE

The king's ableness to lead was questioned by his advisors.

CONTEXTUAL

The success of the mission depended on the ableness of the crew to adapt to the harsh weather.

COMPLEX

While the general's ableness to command was unquestioned, his strategic vision was often criticized for being too rigid to account for the fluid nature of the battlefield.


From Middle English abilnes; equivalent to able + -ness.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Origin Middle English abilnes
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Rare
Updated