51Թ

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View synonyms for

incapable

[in-key-puh-buhl]

adjective

  1. not capable.

    Antonyms:
  2. not having the necessary ability, qualification, or strength to perform some specified act or function.

    As an administrator, he is simply incapable.

    Synonyms: ,
  3. without ordinary capability; incompetent.



noun

  1. a thoroughly incompetent person, especially one of defective mentality.

incapable

/ ɪˈɪəə /

adjective

  1. not capable (of); lacking the ability (to)

  2. powerless or helpless, as through injury or intoxication

  3. not susceptible (to); not admitting (of)

    a problem incapable of solution

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other 51Թ Forms

  • incapability noun
  • incapableness noun
  • incapably adverb
  • ˈ貹 adverb
  • ˌ貹ˈٲ noun
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of incapable1

From the Late Latin word Գ, dating back to 1585–95. See in- 3, capable
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Idioms and Phrases

Idioms
  1. incapable of,

    1. not having the ability, qualification, or strength for (a specified act or function).

    2. not open to; not susceptible to or admitting.

      These materials are incapable of exact measurement.

    3. legally unqualified for.

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Synonym Study

Incapable, incompetent, inefficient, unable are applied to a person or thing that is lacking in ability, preparation, or power for whatever is to be done. Incapable usually means inherently lacking in ability or power: incapable of appreciating music; a bridge incapable of carrying heavy loads. Incompetent, generally used only of persons, means unfit or unqualified for a particular task: incompetent as an administrator. Inefficient means wasteful in the use of effort or power: an inefficient manager; inefficient methods. Unable usually refers to a temporary condition of inability to do some specific thing: unable to relax, to go to a concert.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Republicans are mostly unwilling to do anything to stand up to Donald Trump, and Democrats are incapable of exerting either formal or informal political power.

From

People who for years are literally incapable of reason, much less getting their own dinner or finding the six baby gerbils that “somehow” got loose in the bedroom.

From

Once authorised, the lethal dose would be self-administered by the patient; or by a medical assistant if the patient were incapable.

From

You didn't have to be a rocket scientist or a political scientist to know that Joe Biden was incapable of running an effective campaign for reelection.

From

The UN and its donors say the new model is poorly conceived and politically motivated, incapable of replacing the decades-long tried and tested international humanitarian ecosystem in Gaza.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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incantatoryincapacitant