enabled; enabling
i-ˈnā-b(ə-)liŋ 
1
a
: to provide with the means or opportunity
training that enables people to earn a living
b
: to make possible, practical, or easy
a deal that would enable passage of a new law
c
: to cause to operate
software that enables the keyboard
2
: to give legal power, capacity, or sanction to
a law enabling admission of a state
Did you know?
Enabling: The Behavior of an Enabler
Enable has a number of senses, most of which are some variant on allowing someone (or something, such as enabling cookies on a computer) to do something. In the past several decades, enable has also started to take on a new associated sense in the field of addiction studies, where enabling is viewed as giving misguided support to a person with some substance-abuse issue. A person who facilitates the self-destructive behavior of another is referred to as an enabler.
Examples of enable in a Sentence
The machine enables us to create copies without losing quality.
The system enables students to access class materials online.
These choices are part of what enabled the company to be successful.
a filing system that enables easy access to information
Be sure to enable your computer's firewall.
Recent Examples on the Web
Perhaps above all, the new era involved the rapid expansion and growth in density of networks that enabled unprecedented movement of commodities, people, information (including the measurements recorded by Sabine’s observatories), and invasive organisms.
—
Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
This innovation enables disaggregated AI inferencing, allowing hardware to be used more efficiently while still meeting demanding performance and cost requirements.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 27 Oct. 2025
Micro-CT scans enable scientists to peer inside fossils without damaging them.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
As for grunt, Big Naan is equipped with two 742 kW Caterpillar C32 ACERT engines that enable a top speed of over 14 knots, a cruising speed of 12 knots, and a range exceeding 5,500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 10 knots.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for enable
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Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
This innovation enables disaggregated AI inferencing, allowing hardware to be used more efficiently while still meeting demanding performance and cost requirements.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 27 Oct. 2025
Micro-CT scans enable scientists to peer inside fossils without damaging them.
—Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2025
As for grunt, Big Naan is equipped with two 742 kW Caterpillar C32 ACERT engines that enable a top speed of over 14 knots, a cruising speed of 12 knots, and a range exceeding 5,500 nautical miles at an economical speed of 10 knots.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for enable
Cite this Entry
“Enable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/enable. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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