qualification

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)
qualification
    n 1: an attribute that must be met or complied with and that
         fits a person for something; "her qualifications for the
         job are excellent"; "one of the qualifications for
         admission is an academic degree"; "she has the makings of
         fine musician" [syn: {qualification}, {making}]
    2: the act of modifying or changing the strength of some idea;
       "his new position involves a qualification of his party's
       platform"
    3: a statement that limits or restricts some claim; "he
       recommended her without any reservations" [syn:
       {reservation}, {qualification}]
    
from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Qualification \Qual`i*fi*ca"tion\, n. [Cf. F. qualification. See
   {Qualify}.]
   1. The act of qualifying, or the condition of being
      qualified.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. That which qualifies; any natural endowment, or any
      acquirement, which fits a person for a place, office, or
      employment, or which enables him to sustian any character
      with success; an enabling quality or circumstance;
      requisite capacity or possession.
      [1913 Webster]

            There is no qualification for government but virtue
            and wisdom, actual or presumptive.    --Burke.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. The act of limiting, or the state of being limited; that
      which qualifies by limiting; modification; restriction;
      hence, abatement; diminution; as, to use words without any
      qualification.
      [1913 Webster]
    
from Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856)
QUALIFICATION. Having the requisite qualities for a thing; as, to be 
president of the United States, the candidate must possess certain 
qualifications. See President of the United States. 
    
from Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
181 Moby Thesaurus words for "qualification":
      ability, ableness, about-face, acceptability, accommodation,
      adaptation, adequacy, adjustment, admissibility, allowance,
      alteration, amelioration, apostasy, applicability, appositeness,
      appropriateness, aptitude, aptness, betterment, boundary, bounds,
      break, bump, caliber, capability, capableness, capacity, caveat,
      change, change of heart, changeableness, circumscription, color,
      competence, competency, condition, conditioning, confinement,
      constructive change, continence, continuity, conversion, cramp,
      cramping, decontamination, defection, degeneration,
      degenerative change, desirability, deterioration, deviation,
      difference, discipline, discontinuity, divergence, diversification,
      diversion, diversity, dower, dowry, efficacy, efficiency,
      eligibility, eligible, enablement, endowment, equipment, exception,
      extenuating circumstances, extenuation, extenuative, facility,
      faculty, felicity, fit, fitness, fittedness, fitting, flair,
      flip-flop, forte, furnishing, genius, gift, gilding, gloss,
      gradual change, improvement, instinct, know-how, knowledge, limit,
      limitation, long suit, makings, mastery, maturity, melioration,
      metier, might, mitigation, moderation, modification, modulation,
      natural endowment, natural gift, overthrow, palliation, palliative,
      parts, potential, power, powers, preparedness, prerequisite,
      prescription, proficiency, propriety, proscription, provision,
      proviso, radical change, re-creation, readiness, realignment,
      redesign, reform, reformation, relevance, remaking, renewal,
      requirement, reservation, reshaping, restrain, restriction,
      restructuring, reversal, revival, revivification, revolution,
      ripeness, seasoning, shift, skill, softening, speciality, stint,
      stipulation, string, strong flair, strong point, sudden change,
      sufficiency, suitability, suitableness, suitedness, susceptibility,
      switch, talent, talents, tempering, term, the goods, the stuff,
      total change, transition, trim, tuning, turn, turnabout, upheaval,
      variation, variety, varnish, violent change, what it takes,
      whitewash, whitewashing, worsening, worthiness

    

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