[com.pe.tent] adj [ME, suitable, fr. MF & L; MF, fr. L competent-, competens, fr. prp. of competere] (15c) 1: proper or rightly pertinent
2: having requisite or adequate ability or qualities: fit "a ~ teacher" "a ~ piece of work"
3: legally qualified or adequate "a ~ witness"
4: having the capacity to function or develop in a particular way; specif: having the capacity to respond (as by producing an antibody) to an antigenic determinant "immunologically ~ cells" syn see sufficient -- com.pe.tent.ly adv