Chapter 2 ASKING ABILITY/CAPABILITY

When to Use Ability

   Ability is a noun. It refers to possession of the means or skill to do something.

Someone with superior athletic abilities is very good at sports or other physical games. A writer of great ability is considered to be an excellent writer. In both cases, ability is used to refer to the qualitative nature of the person.

Here are a few more examples,

My ability to mow the lawn is dependent on my access to my neighbor’s lawn mower.

Research shows that, on average, men are likely to have stronger spatial reasoning abilities than women, although psychologists disagree on the cause and degree of this difference.

Snap Inc., in its first quarterly report as a public company, showed it struggled to maintain strong user growth at its Snapchat vanishing-messaging app, sending shares tumbling and sparking worries about its ability to challenge social-media titan Facebook Inc. –The Wall Street Journal

As I mentioned above, ability is considered a qualitative marker, not a quantitative marker. To again take our above example, if someone were a writer of great ability, this would mean that he or she could write well. It makes no comment on the amount to which he or she can write, only to the quality of the writing.

This is important to note: ability is a qualitative marker.

When to Use Capability

What does capability mean? Capability is also a noun, and it also refers to the ability to do something. The difference between capability and ability is usually one of pragmatics.

Capability usually refers to either/or propositions in a potential scenario: a corrupt regime may have nuclear capabilities. It can either launch nuclear missiles, or it cannot.
A fighter jet may also have stealth capability. It either has this capability, or it does not. In this sense, capability is a quantitative marker.

For example,

Our long-range missile network gives us first strike capability around the world.

People who are telekinetic have the capability to kill you with their minds.

Computer researchers reported artificial-intelligence advances on Thursday that surpassed human capabilities for a narrow set of vision-related tasks. –The New York Times

Ability, meanwhile, usually refers to skills, which can have degrees. Your ability to learn new languages might be stronger than mine because I have not fully developed this skill.

Capability, on the other hand, usually refers to either/or scenarios. My car either has the capability to go 200 miles per hour or not. There is no degree or continuum involved. Either it has that capability, or it does not.

Another similar word, capacity, usually refers to an innate potential for something. Humans are born with the capacity to understand and use social language, for instance. While some of us may develop this skill to a higher degree than others, all of us are born with the capacity for it.

Capability and capacity are much more related than capability and ability.

​​​​​ASKING ABOUT ABILITY AND ASKING ABOUT WILLINGNESS

YOU CAN DO IT !

ASKING ABOUT ABILITY AND ASKING ABOUT WILLINGNESS

(Bertanya tentang kemampuan dan bertanya tentang kesedihan)

Expression of Ability adalah Ekspression yang kita gunakan jika kita ingin mengungkapkan dan menyatakan tenang kemampuan: Dibawah ini adalah contoh kalimat yang kita gunakan untuk menyatakan kemampuan atau ketidakmampuan (Ability):

Expression of Ability

Asking if someone can do something:

Can you…?

Do you know how to…?

Do you think you can…?

Do you know anything about…?

Do you have the experience or ability to…?

Saying you are able to do something:

I can…

I am able to…

I know how to…

I feel capable of…

I might be able to…

(Yes), no problem…

I would say I am capable of…

(I think) I have the qualification or experience or ability to…

Saying you can not  to do something:

I cannot…

I am hopeless…

I am not good at…

I have no idea how…

I have no experience of…

No, I don’t know how to…

I don’t know anything about…

I am not sure I can/ know how to…

Willingness (Keinginan)

Willingness (Keinginan) adalah segala kebutuhan lebih terhadap barang ataupun jasa yang ingin dipenuhi setiap manusia pada sesuatu hal yang dianggap kurang. Keinginan tidak bersifat mengikat dan tidak memiliki keharusan untuk segera terpenuhi. Keinginan lebih bersifat tambahan, ketika kebutuhan pokok telah terpenuhi.

Menggunakan Adjectives : Willing (Berminat)

Contoh Kalimat:

I’m not willing to help you. (Artinya: Saya tidak berminat membantumu)

He is willing to come back. (Artinya: Dia berminat untuk kembali)

Etc.

Willingness (Keinginan)

 

Positive
I
She
He
It
You
We
They
 
 Will
‘ll
 
 Sent it

     

Negative
I
She
He
It
You
We
They
 
Will  not
Won’t
 
 Do it

  

Short answer
 
Yes,
No,
I
She
He
It
You
We
They
 
Will
Will not/ won”t

- The short form ‘ii is often used to replsce will

-The short form of will not is won’t