This is another in our series of articles on 1,000 useful words for IELTS, TOEFL and Academic vocabulary.

To read the first article on the word, ‘ABANDON’, please click on here.

To read the second article on the word, ABIDE, please click on here.

Part of speech/ type of word: Ability is a noun.

Meaning: To have the power, opportunity or skill to do something.

Preposition: It is usually followed by the preposition, ‘to’.

Examples:

1. Due to his ability to drive well he got the chauffeur job.

2. Whilst living in Japan he gained the ability to speak Japanese well.

Here is our video on this word:

Here are some more examples for a more academic context useful for IELTS or TOEFL.

1. These increased powers are dangerous as they might give the government the ability to find out about people’s private information.
2. Some argue that some soft drugs are dangerous as they deprive users of the ability to think properly.
3. A person with more money has a greater ability to purchase goods than a poorer person.

We also have the word ‘capability’ which is similar and sometimes interchangeable, but ‘ability’ is much more commonplace.

Good luck with your IELTS exam, check out our video and feel free to ask any questions or more example sentences.