Qualify Means Both to Become Eligible and to Add a Condition
To qualify is to meet a standard, and also to limit a statement. The second sense is the one that catches readers out.
To qualify is to become eligible or officially competent. It has an almost opposite second sense: to qualify a statement is to add a limitation to it. So a *qualified success* is not a success achieved by qualified people; it is a success with reservations attached.
- To become eligible or certified. *She qualified as a vet.*
- To reach the next stage. *They qualified for the final.*
- To limit a statement. *He qualified his praise.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verb | qualify | Qualify for support. |
| Past | qualified | A qualified nurse. |
| Noun | qualification | A teaching qualification. |
| Adjective | qualified | Qualified approval. |
| Adjective | unqualified | Unqualified success. |
How it is used in a sentence
- He qualified as a solicitor in 2015.Professional certification.
- It was a qualified success.With reservations.
- The offer is unqualified.With no conditions attached.
Qualified and unqualified
- Qualified — certified, or limited by conditions
- Unqualified — untrained, or complete and without reservation
- Qualification — a certificate, or a limiting condition
- Qualifier — a preliminary round, or a limiting word
- Disqualify — remove eligibility
From Medieval Latin *qualificare*, to attribute a quality to, from *qualis*, of what kind, and *facere*, to make.
Why can *unqualified* mean both untrained and total?
Because qualify means both to certify and to limit. Remove the limits and you get an unqualified apology; remove the training and you get an unqualified electrician.
Qualification or certification?
A qualification is what you hold. Certification is the process of awarding or verifying it.