capable
capable Lexical Profile
capable Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Having the skill, competence, or practical ability required to perform a task or role effectively.
"The hospital hired a capable administrator to oversee the expansion of the pediatric wing."
Having the capacity, power, or potential to do or achieve a specified action or result (usually followed by 'of').
"This high-resolution telescope is capable of detecting faint galaxies billions of light-years away."
Open to or admitting of a particular treatment, interpretation, or development (followed by 'of').
"The ambiguous clause in the contract is capable of several conflicting interpretations."
Word Nuance & Usage
When describing the specific power or potential to do something (typically followed by 'of'), 'capable' functions as a predicate adjective, whereas in the general sense of 'competent' or 'skilled', it can be used both before a noun and after a linking verb.
• Rhymes for capable
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 16th century from Middle French capable, from Late Latin capabilis ('receptive, able to hold'), derived from Latin capere ('to take, seize, or hold').