Where does “able” come from?

able (Middle English) comes from Old French able, from Latin habilis, from Latin -ilis, from Proto-Italic -elis, from Proto-Indo-European -elis, from Proto-Indo-European -lós — Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.

able (Middle English): capable, expert, qualified, skilful, competent

Definitions

  1. capable, expert, qualified, skilful, competent

Ancestry of “able”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Frenchableable; capable
2Latinhabilisable to have/possess/maintain; having sufficient...
3Latin-ilis-ile
4Proto-Italic-elis—
5Proto-Indo-European-elis—
6Proto-Indo-European-lósForms agent nouns from verbal roots

Words derived from “able”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European -lós →