ability
Direct German Translations & Equivalents:
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Definitions & Usage
(obsolete) Suitableness.
(uncountable) The quality or state of being able; capacity to do or of doing something; having the necessary power.
The legal wherewithal to act.
(now limited to Scotland dialects) Physical power.
(archaic) Financial ability.
(uncountable) A unique power of the mind; a faculty.
(countable) A skill or competence in doing; mental power; talent; aptitude.
Notable Literary & Historical Quotes
“Imagine a country where children do nothing but play until they start compulsory schooling at age seven. Then, without exception, they attend comprehensives until the age of 16. Charging school fees is illegal, and so is sorting pupils into ability groups by streaming or setting.”
— 2013 July 19, Peter Wilby, “Finland spreads word on schools”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 6, page 30:
“The ability to shift profits to low-tax countries by locating intellectual property in them, which is then licensed to related businesses in high-tax countries, is often assumed to be the preserve of high-tech companies.”
— 2013 June 22, “T time”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 68:
“Then the disciples, euery man according to his abilitie, determined to send reliefe vnto the brethren which dwelt in Iudea.”
— 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 11:29: