unable
(usually followed by “to”) not having the necessary means or skill or know-how
How often you will meet it
Rank 1,606 of 71,295 words measured. It occurs 11,321 times across 155,139 chapters — 0.005% of every word in the library.
What it means
adjective
- (usually followed by “to”) not having the necessary means or skill or know-how unable to get to town without a carunable to obtain funds
- (usually followed by “to”) lacking necessary physical or mental ability dyslexics are unable to learn to read adequatelythe sun was unable to melt enough snow
- lacking in power or forcefulness also: ineffective, ineffectual an ineffectual rulerlike an unable phoenix in hot ashes
unable in real books
Each sentence below was written by a published author and is taken from a different book in our library. Open one to read the passage it came from, with narration.
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Of late she had grown unable to look the young man in the face.
The Shadow of a Crime: A Cumbrian Romance · Hall, Sir Caine · Chapter 1
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The government which had made the Negro a citizen found itself unable to protect him.
The Red Record Tabulated Statistics · Ida B. Wells-Barnett · Chapter 1
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How could she expect another to keep a secret she had been unable to keep herself?
Other People's Money · Emile Gaboriau · Chapter 1
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So unable to please a woman, that, like a Dutch doublet, all his back is shrunk into his breaches.
The White Devil · John Webster · Chapter 1
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They had marched thirty-six miles without rest, along bad roads and through woods, and were unable to go farther.
A Knight of the White Cross · G. A. (George Alfred) Henty · Chapter 1