What does disable mean?
Word: Disable
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Disable means to stop something from working, or to switch a feature off. An illness or injury can also disable a person, stopping them from using part of the body.
Synonyms: switch off, deactivate
Antonyms: enable
How do you spell disable?
Syllables: dis - a - ble
Tricky part: It begins with the prefix dis-, which has just one s. Children sometimes double it.
Watch out for: dissable, dizable
Memory tip: The prefix dis- has one s, as in dislike and discover. Two s's appear only when the next part starts with s, as in dissimilar.
Disable in a sentence
Example 1: Papa disabled the alarm before opening the shop.
Example 2: You can disable notifications so your tablet does not buzz during homework.
Example 3: The storm disabled the power lines in our area for a whole day.
Fun Fact
On many apps, a button that has been disabled turns pale grey, which is why people say it is greyed out.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Fusion
Add the correct option to the following to make a new word:
dis_____
a) aible
b) able
c) abble
d) abel
Show answer
b) able. Dis + able: the second part is simply the word able.
Word Champ
Which of the words cannot be made using the letters in the given word?
disable
a) ideas
b) blade
c) bails
d) label
Show answer
d) label. Label uses l twice; disable has it once.
Spell Spies
Choose the pair which has a spelling error:
a) include : exclud
b) arrive : depart
c) appear : vanish
d) disable : enable
Show answer
a) include : exclud. All four pairs are opposites; exclude needs an e at the end.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Mum disabled the doorbell during the baby's nap. What happened?
a) the bell rang twice
b) the bell changed its tune
c) the bell rang louder
d) the bell could not ring
Show answer
d) the bell could not ring
2. If you disable the Wi-Fi on a laptop, what happens?
a) it connects faster than before
b) it downloads new games
c) it charges its battery
d) it stops connecting to the internet
Show answer
d) it stops connecting to the internet
