ability

[A*bil·i*ty]

Ability is skill or talent. You might have the ability to blow bubbles, or sing in a falsetto, or dance the waltz. Or, just maybe, you have the ability to do all three things at once. Impressive!

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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.

Noun
the quality of being able to perform; a quality that permits or facilitates achievement or accomplishment

Noun
possession of the qualities (especially mental qualities) required to do something or get something done; "danger heightened his powers of discrimination"

n.
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.

Ability

A*bil"i*ty , n.; pl. Abilities. [F. habilet'82, earlier spelling habilit'82 (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.

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

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

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

Abime or Abyme

A*bime" or A*byme" (), n. [F. ab'8cme. See Abysm.] A abyss. [Obs.]

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.

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Usage Examples

Ability is the art of getting credit for all the home runs somebody else hits.

Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.

America allows us to be able to dream, then gives us the ability to achieve those dreams.

A mother's ability to provide for her children is not always tied to income, but rather to education.

Americans have an abiding belief in their ability to control reality by purely material means... airline insurance replaces the fear of death with the comforting prospect of cash.

A retentive memory may be a good thing, but the ability to forget is the true token of greatness.

A reporter's ability to keep the bond of confidentiality often enables him to learn the hidden or secret aspects of government.

Misspelled Form

ability, qability, wability, sability, zability, qbility, wbility, sbility, zbility, aqbility, awbility, asbility, azbility, avbility, agbility, ahbility, anbility, a bility, avility, agility, ahility, anility, a ility, abvility, abgility, abhility, abnility, ab ility, abuility, ab8ility, ab9ility, aboility, abjility, abkility, abulity, ab8lity, ab9lity, abolity, abjlity, abklity, abiulity, abi8lity, abi9lity, abiolity, abijlity, abiklity, abiklity, abiolity, abiplity, abi:lity, abikity, abioity, abipity, abi:ity, abilkity, abiloity, abilpity, abil:ity, abiluity, abil8ity, abil9ity, abiloity, abiljity, abilkity, abiluty, abil8ty, abil9ty, abiloty, abiljty, abilkty, abiliuty, abili8ty, abili9ty, abilioty, abilijty, abilikty, abilirty, abili5ty, abili6ty, abiliyty, abiligty, abiliry, abili5y, abili6y, abiliyy, abiligy, abilitry, abilit5y, abilit6y, abilityy, abilitgy, abilitty, abilit6y, abilit7y, abilituy, abilithy, abilitt, abilit6, abilit7, abilitu, abilith, abilityt, ability6, ability7, abilityu, abilityh.

Other Usage Examples

A sense of humor is the ability to understand a joke - and that the joke is oneself.

A good boss makes his men realize they have more ability than they think they have so that they consistently do better work than they thought they could.

All my life, I have loved and been inspired by French cinema, and as a studio head it has been my pride and joy to have the ability to bring movies to audiences around the world.

A man will treat a woman almost exactly the way he treats his own interior feminine. In fact, he hasn't the ability to see a woman, objectively speaking, until he has made some kind of peace with his interior woman.

A man's ability to haggle is never a turn-on. The only thing less romantic than how much you paid is how much you saved. The last thing we want to hear is how you talked the jeweler down on our new earrings.

America's strength is not our diversity our strength is our ability to unite people of different backgrounds around common principles. A common language is necessary to reach that goal.

A coach once told me there are four factors that determine a players' performance: his tactical awareness, his physical condition, his technical ability and his mental strength.

An idea isn't worth much until a man is found who has the energy and ability to make it work.