talent
n. C / Un. a natural ability to do something well. You are born with it, but you still need to practice to get better.
n. a natural aptitude or skill. Often used collectively in a business context to refer to people with high potential or specific expertise.
She has a natural talent for playing the piano.
The recruitment team is always looking for new talent to join the engineering department.
While hard work is essential for success, an innate talent for abstract reasoning gives some students a distinct advantage in advanced mathematics.
From Middle English talent, from Old English talente, borrowed from the plural of Latin talentum (“a Grecian weight; a talent of money”), from Ancient Greek τάλαντον (tálanton, “balance, a particular weight, especially of gold, sum of money, a talent”). Compare Old High German talenta (“talent”). Later figurative senses are from Old French talent (“talent, will, inclination, desire”), derived from the biblical Parable of the Talents.
Uncountable when referring to the general quality of being skilled; countable when referring to a specific person or a particular skill.
He has a talent in musicHe has a talent for musicThe noun talent typically takes the preposition 'for' rather than 'in' when describing the area of expertise.