Words / B2

i-NAYBL/ɪˈneɪbl/

To enable is to make it possible for someone to do something: enable someone to + verb. Allow can be permission (“you may”); enable is capacity or means (“this tool makes it possible”), while facilitate is more “make the process easier.” Disable is the technical opposite for machines; enabling is also an adjective for technology.

Meaning

To make it possible for someone to do something.

Examples

• “The grant enabled her to study abroad.”
• “The scholarship enabled him to stay on for a master's.”
• “Captions enable more students to follow the lecture.”

Good to know

enable someone to + verb. Allow = permission; enable = make possible.

Near in meaning

allow

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