Definition of SUFFICIENTLY

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

Whether the deal can survive without the U.S. depends on whether Tehran continues to receive sufficient economic benefits by way of business with the Europeans. — Josh Lederman, Fox News, "US intensifies pressure on Iran, sanctioning central banker," 16 May 2018 Antonio Vitiello reported on Twitter that the club will have to offload some midfielders in order to make room in the squad for the youngster, with the depth of midfielders already sufficient enough. — SI.com, "Max Meyer's Representatives Spotted in Milan Ahead of Proposed Move to I Rossoneri," 20 June 2018 The federal government does not have sufficient resources to regularly inspect all the country’s food production facilities, Lange said. — Shari Rudavsky, Indianapolis Star, "Are foodborne illness outbreaks increasing or does it just seem that way?," 14 June 2018 In the past, CCF has had difficulties competing for patients and producing a sufficient supply of cannabis. — Jan Hefler, Philly.com, "Medical marijuana dispensary expands in South Jersey, eyes new locations in Cherry Hill and Moorestown," 10 June 2018 When properly equipped with the right strategies, sufficient resources and solid political support, U.N. peacekeeping works. — António Guterres, Time, "Join U.N. Peacekeepers on the Ground in Congo in This Virtual Reality Experience," 29 May 2018 In the show, four first-year residents and their colleagues tended to patients in an understaffed, busy emergency room that lacks sufficient resources, creating a condition known as Code Black. — Temi Adebowale, Country Living, "CBS Medical Drama 'Code Black' Was Just Canceled," 24 May 2018 High prices should be enough to incentivize producers to bring on sufficient new cobalt supply, said Anthony Milewski, chief executive of Cobalt 27 Capital Corp., owner of the world’s largest private stockpile of the metal. — David Stringer, Bloomberg.com, "Threat of Cobalt Supply Shock Is Top Risk for Electric Vehicles," 21 May 2018 But Judge Siraj Desai, who sentenced van Breda in May, said on Monday that the defense had not presented sufficient reasons for an appeal to proceed, according to news outlet News24. — Krista Mahr, The Seattle Times, "South African man denied appeal on ax-murder convictions," 20 Aug. 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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