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Able vs Sharp - What's the difference?

able | sharp | Related terms |

Able is a related term of sharp.


As an adjective able

is (obsolete|passive) easy to use .

As a verb able

is (obsolete) to make ready .

As a noun able

is a word that is used in place of the letter "a" during communication.

As a proper noun sharp is

.

able

English

Alternative forms

* (obsolete) hable

Etymology 1

From (etyl), from .

Adjective

(er)
  • (obsolete, passive) Easy to use.
  • * 1710 , Thomas Betterton, The life of Mr. Thomas Betterton, the late eminent tragedian. :
    • As the hands are the most habil parts of the body...
  • (obsolete, passive) Suitable; competent.
  • * 2006 , Jon L. Wakelyn, America's Founding Charters: Primary Documents of Colonial and Revolutionary Era Governance, Volume 1 , Greenwood Publishing Group, pages 212:
    • ...and for every able man servant that he or she shall carry or send armed and provided as aforesaid, ninety acres of land of like measure.
  • (obsolete, dialectal, passive) Liable to.
  • Having the necessary powers or the needed resources to accomplish a task.
  • Free from constraints preventing completion of task; permitted to; not prevented from.
    • I’ll see you as soon as I’m able .
    With that obstacle removed, I am now able to proceed with my plan.
    I’m only able to visit you when I have other work here.
    That cliff is able to be climbed.
  • (obsolete, dialectal) Having the physical strength; robust; healthy.
    • After the past week of forced marches, only half the men are fully able .
  • (obsolete) Rich; well-to-do.
    • He was born to an able family.
  • Gifted with skill, intelligence, knowledge, or competence.
    • The chairman was also an able sailor.
  • (legal) Legally]] [[qualify, qualified or competent.
    • He is able to practice law in six states.
  • (nautical) Capable of performing all the requisite duties; as an able seaman.
    • Synonyms
    * See also
    Derived terms
    * ability * -able * able-bodied * able seaman * ableism * be able, be able to * capable * disable * disabled * disablism * disability * enable

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) ablen, from (etyl) able (adjective).

    Verb

    (abl)
  • (obsolete) To make ready.
  • (obsolete) To make capable; to enable.
  • (obsolete) To dress.
  • (obsolete) To give power to; to reinforce; to confirm.
  • (obsolete) To vouch for; to guarantee.
  • * vi
    • None does offend, none....I’ll able ’em.
    Derived terms
    * abled

    Etymology 3

    Noun

    (-)
  • A word that is used in place of the letter "A" during communication.

    • Statistics

    *

    References

    Anagrams

    * ----

    sharp

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Able to cut easily.
  • :
  • *
  • *:Orion hit a rabbit once; but though sore wounded it got to the bury, and, struggling in, the arrow caught the side of the hole and was drawn out. Indeed, a nail filed sharp is not of much avail as an arrowhead; you must have it barbed, and that was a little beyond our skill.
  • (lb) Intelligent.
  • :
  • * {{quote-news, author=(Jesse Jackson), title=In the Ferguson era, Malcolm X’s courage in fighting racism inspires more than ever, work=(The Guardian) (London), date=20 February 2015 citation
    • , passage=At school, despite his sharp mind, Malcolm was laughed at by teachers when he said he wanted to be a lawyer. }}
  • Terminating in a point or edge; not obtuse or rounded.
  • :
  • :
  • (lb) Higher than usual by one semitone (denoted by the symbol after the name of the note).
  • (lb) Higher in pitch than required.
  • :
  • Having an intense, acrid flavour.''
  • :
  • Sudden and intense.
  • :
  • *
  • *:She wakened in sharp panic, bewildered by the grotesquerie of some half-remembered dream in contrast with the harshness of inclement fact.
  • (lb) Illegal or dishonest.
  • :
  • (lb) Keenly or unduly attentive to one's own interests; shrewd.
  • :
  • *(Jonathan Swift) (1667–1745)
  • *:the necessity of being so sharp and exacting
  • Exact, precise, accurate; keen.
  • :
  • *{{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=July-August, author= Catherine Clabby
    • , magazine=(American Scientist), title= Focus on Everything , passage=Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus.
  • Offensive, critical, or acrimonious.
  • :
  • (lb) Stylish or attractive.
  • :
  • Observant; alert; acute.
  • :
  • Forming a small angle; forming an angle of less than ninety degrees.
  • :
  • *1900 , , (The House Behind the Cedars) , Chapter I,
  • *:The street down which Warwick had come intersected Front Street at a sharp angle in front of the old hotel, forming a sort of flatiron block at the junction, known as Liberty Point
  • Steep; precipitous; abrupt.
  • :
  • Said of as extreme a value as possible.
  • :
  • (lb) Tactical; risky.
  • *1963 , Max Euwe, Chess Master Vs. Chess Amateur (page xviii)
  • *:Time and time again, the amateur player has lost the opportunity to make the really best move because he felt bound to follow some chess "rule" he had learned, rather than to make the sharp move which was indicated by the position.
  • *1975 , Lud?k Pachman, Decisive Games in Chess History (page 64)
  • *:In such situations most chess players choose the ohvious and logical way: they go in for sharp play. However, not everyone is a natural attacking player
  • Piercing; keen; severe; painful.
  • :
  • *(William Shakespeare) (1564-1616)
  • *:Sharp misery had worn him to the bones.
  • *(William Cowper) (1731-1800)
  • *:the morning sharp and clear
  • *(John Keble) (1792-1866)
  • *:in sharpest perils faithful proved
  • Eager or keen in pursuit; impatient for gratification.
  • :
  • (lb) Fierce; ardent; fiery; violent; impetuous.
  • *(John Milton) (1608-1674)
  • *:in sharp contest of battle
  • *(John Dryden) (1631-1700)
  • *:A sharp assault already is begun.
  • Composed of hard, angular grains; gritty.
  • :
  • :(Edward Moxon)
  • Uttered in a whisper, or with the breath alone; aspirated; unvoiced.

    • Synonyms

    * (able to cut easily) keen, razor, razor-sharp * (intelligent) brainy, bright, intelligent, keen, smart, witty * (able to pierce easily) pointed * (having an intense and acrid flavour) acrid, pungent * (sudden and intense) abrupt, acute, stabbing * dishonest, dodgy, illegal, illicit, underhand * (accurate) accurate, exact, keen, precise * (critical) acrimonious, bitter, cutting, harsh, hostile, nasty * chic, elegant, smart, stylish * (observant) acute, alert, keen, observant, sharp-eyed

    Antonyms

    * (able to cut easily) blunt, dull * (intelligent) dim, dim-witted, slow, slow-witted, thick * (able to pierce easily) blunt * (higher than usual by one semitone) flat * flat * (having an intense and acrid flavour) bland, insipid, tasteless * (sudden and intense) dull * above-board, honest, legit, legitimate, reputable * (accurate) inaccurate, imprecise * (critical) complimentary, flattering, friendly, kind, nice * inelegant, scruffy, shabby * (observant) unobservant

    Derived terms

    * not the sharpest knife in the drawer * sharpish * sharply * sharp-witted

    Adverb

    (er)
  • To a point or edge; piercingly; eagerly; sharply.
  • * Shakespeare
    • You bite so sharp at reasons.
  • (notcomp) Exactly.
    • I'll see you at twelve o'clock sharp .
  • (music) In a higher pitch than is correct or desirable.
    • I didn't enjoy the concert much because the tenor kept going sharp on the high notes.

    Synonyms

    * (exactly) exactly, on the dot (of time), precisely

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (music) The symbol ?, placed after the name of a note in the key signature or before a note on the staff to indicate that the note is to be played a semitone higher.
    • The pitch pipe sounded out a perfect F? (F sharp).
    ''Transposition frequently is harder to read because of all the sharps and flats on the staff.
  • (music) A note that is played a semitone higher than usual; denoted by the name of the note that is followed by the symbol ?.
  • (music) A note that is sharp in a particular key.
    • The piece was difficult to read after it had been transposed, since in the new key many notes were sharps .
  • (music) The scale having a particular sharp note as its tonic.
    • Beethoven's "Moonlight Sonata" is written in C? minor (C sharp minor.)
  • (usually, in the plural) Something that is sharp.
    • Place sharps in the specially marked red container for safe disposal.
  • A sharp tool or weapon.
  • * Collier
    • If butchers had but the manners to go to sharps , gentlemen would be contented with a rubber at cuffs.
  • (medicine) A hypodermic syringe.
  • (medicine, dated) A scalpel or other edged instrument used in surgery.
  • A dishonest person; a cheater.
    • The casino kept in the break room a set of pictures of known sharps for the bouncers to see.
  • Part of a stream where the water runs very rapidly.
    • (Charles Kingsley)
  • A sewing needle with a very slender point, more pointed than a blunt or a between.
  • (in the plural) middlings
  • (slang, dated) An expert.
  • A sharpie (member of Australian gangs of the 1960s and 1970s).
  • * 2006 , Iain McIntyre, Tomorrow Is Today: Australia in the Psychedelic Era, 1966-1970
    • The Circle was one of the few dances the older sharps frequented; mostly they were to be found in pubs, pool-halls or at the track.

    Derived terms

    * card sharp * double sharp

    See also

    * (music) accidental, flat, natural *

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • (music) To raise the pitch of a note half a step making a natural note a sharp.
    • That new musician must be tone deaf: he sharped half the notes of the song!
  • To play tricks in bargaining; to act the sharper.
    • (rfquotek, L'Estrange)

    Anagrams

    * harps 1000 English basic words