Sentence:  Again , I at first misconstrued this disconcertingly intense communication , and I quickly cast through my mind to account for her being <WSD>able</WSD> to speak , with such utter conviction , of an opinion held by my father , now several years deceased . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  (usually followed by `to') having the necessary means or skill or know-how or authority to do something