sufficient

adjective

suf·fi·cient | \ sə-ˈfi-shənt

Definition of sufficient

1a : enough to meet the needs of a situation or a proposed end sufficient provisions for a month

b : being a sufficient condition

2 archaic : qualified, competent

Other Words from sufficient Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about sufficient

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Choose the Right Synonym for sufficient

sufficient, enough, adequate, competent mean being what is necessary or desirable. sufficient suggests a close meeting of a need. sufficient savings enough is less exact in suggestion than sufficient. do you have enough food? adequate may imply barely meeting a requirement. the service was adequate competent suggests measuring up to all requirements without question or being adequately adapted to an end. had no competent notion of what was going on

Examples of sufficient in a Sentence

Considering that John Adams was notoriously insecure about his own place in history, he surely would have enjoyed his current renown. He and Abigail get pride of place in the family crypt, down a winding staircase in the church basement. On her plaque in the crypt, she is described as a "model of domestic worth," as though she were a particularly charming chifforobe, and not a woman who survived a troubled marriage with sufficient courage that both houses of Congress adjourned upon hearing of her death. — Charles P. Pierce, Boston Globe Magazine, 26 July 2009 Because canines are, for the most part, unable to naturally manufacture sufficient vitamins to meet their daily requirements, a dog's routinely consumed meals, with some exceptions, must be augmented with them during the manufacturing process. — Tom Ewing, Dog Watch, February 2009 And since this policy is usually accompanied by a pledge to provide sufficient scholarship funds to admitted applicants who cannot afford the full cost (around $45,000 in the Ivy League today), it is an expensive policy. — Andrew Delbanco, New York Review of Books, 29 Mar. 2007 The result was a magnificent example of evidence overkill—the first set of prints alone was sufficient to match the gangbanger to a set in the national Automated Fingerprint Identification System database. — Jessica Snyder Sachs, Popular Science, March 2004 A brisk walk is sufficient to raise your heart rate. There must be sufficient funds in your bank account to cover the check. Her explanation was not sufficient to satisfy the police.

Recent Examples on the Web

Ninety-six percent of rated companies in EMEA have sufficient liquidity over a 12-month period, according to Moody’s. — Nina Trentmann, WSJ, "U.K. Companies Risk Ratings Downgrades in Case of No-Deal Brexit," 28 Feb. 2019 But the opioid epidemic has crossed all boundaries, and even in the suburbs, there's not sufficient treatment or support. — Andy Marso, kansascity, "Overdoses, prison, scant treatment: Mother's story shows state of KC’s opioid crisis," 26 June 2018 Napolitano talked at length about school overcrowding, and claimed there was already sufficient rental housing in the area around GlenStar’s land. — Maya Dukmasova, Chicago Reader, "News / Housing Lost battle on affordable housing means war on aldermanic prerogative will continue," 26 June 2018 Fennell said the plane failed to gain sufficient airspeed after take off. — Maria Elena Vizcaino, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Plane falls into ditch at Orlando Executive Airport," 25 June 2018 These are the classic cooks—think Julia Child—who believe that with sufficient training anyone can make a masterpiece out of ordinary ingredients. — Ruth Reichl, Town & Country, "This Scarlet Prawn Is the Best Seafood You Can Eat," 30 Jan. 2019 One is whether batteries can reach an energy density sufficient to make using them for air travel possible. — John Timmer, Ars Technica, "When will electric airliners make sense?," 14 Dec. 2018 The 10 paintings with explanatory wall labels would be, to my mind, perfectly self-sufficient without them. — Peter Plagens, WSJ, "‘Charline von Heyl: Snake Eyes’ Review: A Pro in Need of Poetry," 18 Dec. 2018 Most levels and most LDAs, especially in these early days of DERs, are far from fully self-sufficient and will be for some time. — David Roberts, Vox, "Clean energy technologies threaten to overwhelm the grid. Here’s how it can adapt.," 30 Nov. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'sufficient.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for sufficient

Middle English sufficiant, sufficient, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French suffisant, sufficient, in part from present participle of suffire "to suffice," in part borrowed from Latin sufficient-, sufficiens, from present participle of sufficere "to have enough strength or capacity, be adequate" — more at suffice

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