Both Uses of
enable
in
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
- The reading of these documents enabled me to utter my thoughts, and to meet the arguments brought forward to sustain slavery; but while they relieved me of one difficulty, they brought on another even more painful than the one of which I was relieved.†
Chpt 7enabled = made possible
- It enabled him to get his farm tilled with much less expense to himself than he could have had it done without such a reputation.†
Chpt 9 *
Definition:
to make possible
in various senses, including:
- to give someone the ability, knowledge, or authority to do something -- as in "The study will enable an informed discussion."
- to activate a computer system for use -- as in "You can enable the feature in the Settings Page."
- to permit someone to repeat bad behavior, so they reinforce the bad pattern -- as in "I don't want to enable her drug addiction."