How to Use inability in a Sentence

inability

noun
  • She has shown an inability to concentrate.
  • Banks use these covenants to protect against the risk of the debtor's inability to pay down the debt.
    — John Shufeldt, Forbes, 21 Apr. 2022
  • The Bulls fell into a 20-point hole in the first half due to their inability to match the Grizzlies in the paint.
    — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 29 Oct. 2024
  • The inability to catch one's breath can be a scary thing.
    — Daryl Austin, USA TODAY, 3 Aug. 2023
  • One of the worst parts of being homeless is the inability to keep clean.
    — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 14 May 2023
  • Just one more free throw than turnovers An inability to get to the free throw line struck again.
    — Jaden Lewis, Kansas City Star, 7 Feb. 2024
  • Macdonald put the blame for the wideout’s down year on the team’s inability to get him the ball.
    — Michael-Shawn Dugar, The Athletic, 15 Jan. 2025
  • But the Patriots’ inability to punch the ball across the goal line came back to haunt them in the second half.
    — Ben Volin, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Jan. 2023
  • The inability to see the object whole and entire drives the love story.
    — Merve Emre, The New Yorker, 27 Feb. 2023
  • The inability of the Badgers defense to get off the field on third down came back to haunt it late in the second quarter.
    — Mark Stewart, Journal Sentinel, 26 Nov. 2022
  • And the inability to close out leads has robbed the Rangers of the chance to regain late-season momentum.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas News, 5 Sep. 2023
  • The offense’s inability to stay on the field fatigued the defense.
    — Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2023
  • This grade gets docked slightly by the team’s inability to convert on a five-on-three chance late in the second.
    — Nick Ashbourne, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024
  • The Giants lost three close games to the Bills, Jets and Rams that slipped out of their hands in large part due to the head coach’s inability to press the right buttons in big spots.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 8 Aug. 2024
  • His main weakness to date is an inability to draw many walks.
    — Dan Schlossberg, Forbes, 17 Aug. 2022
  • Among the reasons: the city’s inability to control mass tourism.
    — Stefano Pitrelli, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024
  • Perhaps even more of a hindrance to the Sun was their inability to take take care of the ball throughout the afternoon.
    — Lila Bromberg, Hartford Courant, 17 July 2022
  • Many are supposed to be removed once the risk of clots, or inability to be on blood thinners, has passed.
    — Lizzy Lawrence, STAT, 2 Feb. 2023
  • What drives many of us mad is the inability to change those power dynamics that are so plain to see.
    — T.m. Brown, The Atlantic, 16 Dec. 2024
  • For a franchise that once won 33-straight, the inability to string even two wins in a row could soon be season-ending.
    — Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2022
  • The 21-year-old’s inability to throw strikes was alarming.
    — Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 28 July 2023
  • The inability to score shouldn't be a major surprise given the culture of the best teams in Mountain West.
    — Erick Smith, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2022
  • The downfall of the 2020 team in the regular season and playoffs was an inability to score without the long ball.
    — Bobby Nightengale, The Enquirer, 28 Mar. 2022
  • The story in the first half was the Bulldogs' inability to make shots and build on an eight-point lead while Arkansas struggled from the field.
    — Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, 25 Mar. 2022
  • The shortage of bullpen resources has been magnified by the inability of the starters to pitch deep into games.
    — Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2024
  • During the summer, older adults and young children can get sick and die from the inability to keep cool.
    — Joie D. Acosta, Baltimore Sun, 26 Mar. 2024
  • Both say the inability to work and the sense of isolation has been difficult.
    — Megan Specia, New York Times, 18 Nov. 2023
  • Some of that is on the offensive line, which is without David Andrews, and some is on Jones’s inability to get the ball out on time.
    — Christopher Price, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Oct. 2022
  • The inability to get Martin into a committee hearing seemed to mark a kind of ending.
    — Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 11 May 2025
  • More accurately, the newly positive change in your 401(k) has to do with the inability of presidents to ignore market sentiment and live to tell the tale.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 15 May 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'inability.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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