inability

noun

in·​abil·​i·​ty ˌi-nə-ˈbi-lə-tē How to pronounce inability (audio)
: lack of sufficient power, resources, or capacity
his inability to do math

Examples of inability in a Sentence

She has shown an inability to concentrate. the inability of the government to cope with the problem
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
In other democracies, such inability to drive through legislation would most likely be met by a confidence vote, perhaps the ousting of the head of the party of government and a general election. Kate Plummer, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025 Their issue, like others, has been an inability to churn these out with regularity. Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025 Fifty-five percent of manufacturers in the state said cost increases have been the biggest impact and 32% reported that uncertainty or an inability to plan was the biggest impact. Anna Kleiber, jsonline.com, 2 Oct. 2025 The league, of course, is full of copycats, meaning that opposing offenses will clearly try to capitalize on the Miami’s inability to stop the run. Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for inability

Word History

Etymology

Middle English inhabilite disqualification, from Medieval Latin inhabilitas, from Latin in- + habilitas ability

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of inability was in the 15th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Inability.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inability. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

inability

noun
in·​abil·​i·​ty ˌin-ə-ˈbil-ət-ē How to pronounce inability (audio)
: lack of ability, power, or means
his inability to carry a tune

More from Merriam-Webster on inability

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!