supply

plural supplies

Definition of supply

(Entry 1 of 3)

1a : the quantity or amount (as of a commodity) needed or available beer was in short supply in that hot weather— Nevil Shute

b : provisions, stores —usually used in plural

c : a member of the clergy filling a vacant pulpit temporarily

d obsolete : reinforcements —often used in plural

2 : the act or process of filling a want or need engaged in the supply of raw materials to industry

3 : the quantities of goods or services offered for sale at a particular time or at one price

4 : something that maintains or constitutes a supply

5 obsolete : assistance, succor

supply

verb

sup·ply | \ sə-ˈplī

supplied; supplying

Definition of supply (Entry 2 of 3)

transitive verb

1 [Middle French souploier, alteration of soupplier]

a : to make available for use : provide supplied the necessary funds

b : to satisfy the needs or wishes of

c : to provide for : satisfy laws by which the material wants of men are supplied — Bulletin of Bates College

d : to furnish (organs, tissues, or cells) with a vital element (such as blood or nerve fibers)

2 : to substitute for another in specifically : to serve as a supply in (a church or pulpit)

3 : to add as a supplement

intransitive verb

: to serve as a supply or substitute

supply

Definition of supply (Entry 3 of 3)

less common spelling of supplely

Other Words from supply Synonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about supply

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Examples of supply in a Sentence

Noun adequate supplies of fresh water He bought a month's supply of cigarettes. They took a month's worth of supplies on the camping trip. The town is in need of basic medical supplies. a store that sells art supplies The state is trying to disrupt the supply of illegal drugs. The storm interrupted the town's electricity supply. Verb The company supplied the necessary money. You'll have to supply your own food.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun The workings of supply and demand could reduce the amount of oysters pulled from the bay and its tributaries, which might be just what the doctor ordered, Colden said. — Christine Condon, baltimoresun.com, "As Maryland’s wild oyster season starts, experts worry coronavirus fears may reduce demand," 19 Oct. 2020 Though the market as a whole is chugging along at breakneck speed, there were broad variations in supply and demand by geography and property type. — Jim Buchta, Star Tribune, "Low interest rates keep Twin Cities home sales rolling along," 19 Oct. 2020 But others in the wine community do have concerns about supply and potential prices. — Mike Snider, USA TODAY, "Where there's smoke, there's wine concerns. Wine supply — and prices — could be affected by wildfire smoke," 15 Oct. 2020 The basic economic laws of supply and demand will determine what wages actually are, as evidenced in the three years before the Covid-19 virus decimated the economy. — WSJ, "What Is the Minimum Wage Really About?," 13 Oct. 2020 Traders will comb through OPEC’s monthly market report on Tuesday for any indications of a lopsided market given the excess supply and demand destruction from the pandemic. — Daniel J Graeber, Houston Chronicle, "OPEC assessments to drive oil prices, analysts say," 12 Oct. 2020 The answer will depend on the supply-and-demand economics of online education in the coming years. — Avi Loeb, Scientific American, "Academia after COVID," 10 Oct. 2020 Investopedia and robo-advisory firm Betterment have used Animal Crossing as a way to explain market concepts basic and more advanced, such as supply and demand, arbitrage, and how to conduct fundamental and technical analyses for real stocks. — Berber Jin, Bloomberg.com, "How ‘Animal Crossing’ Is Preparing Players to Trade Stocks," 7 Oct. 2020 The report also brought up another reason: Some of the day-ahead energy market mechanisms put in place by the CAISO to meet supply and demand appear to have actually exacerbated the problem. — Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, "Report: A combination of factors caused California’s rolling blackouts in August," 7 Oct. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Those two West African countries together supply about 70% of the world’s cocoa beans, the raw ingredient for the bars and treats made by the likes of Hershey, Mars, and Nestlé. — Vivienne Walt, Fortune, "Big Chocolate’s child-labor problem is still far from fixed," 19 Oct. 2020 Like Scripture, his pages could supply an apt quotation to support almost any political or legal argument. — Michael Dirda, Washington Post, "Tocqueville’s ‘Democracy in America,’ read anew in 2020, feels prophetic — and in some ways, hopeful," 14 Oct. 2020 Three industrial gas giants— Air Liquide, Air Products and Linde—currently supply most of the world’s hydrogen fuel, nearly all of it gray. — Rochelle Toplensky, WSJ, "Hydrogen’s Dirty Little Secret," 8 Oct. 2020 Hubs will supply the vaccine, protective equipment for staff and other supplies. — The Economist, "Ready, steady, jab Britain prepares to roll out a covid-19 vaccine," 7 Oct. 2020 Bunny’s Mobile Restaurant will supply the traditional German fare and live music. — Phillip Valys, sun-sentinel.com, "Prost! These South Florida bars, German-American clubs still give a schnitzel about Oktoberfest," 7 Oct. 2020 But that still won’t supply every teacher who has students with disabilities. — Colette Davidson, The Christian Science Monitor, "Behind the masks, teachers and students struggle to communicate," 30 Sep. 2020 The center will supply clear storage containers for each client to keep their own supplies, including pens, pencils, tissues, paintbrushes, hand-sanitizer and more. — cleveland, "Beachwood’s Menorah Park will reopen to clients Oct. 5," 25 Sep. 2020 American businesses supply haunted houses for places all over the world. — David Hogberg, Washington Examiner, "Halloween and coronavirus look spooky for seasonal businesses," 25 Sep. 2020

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

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Last Updated

22 Oct 2020

Cite this Entry

“Supply.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supply. Accessed 29 Oct. 2020.

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More Definitions for supply

supply

noun

English Language Learners Definition of supply

(Entry 1 of 2)

: the amount of something that is available to be used

: things (such as food, equipment, fuel, etc.) that are needed for a particular purpose and that will be used by a particular person or group

: the process or system by which something is provided to a person, place, etc.

supply

verb

English Language Learners Definition of supply (Entry 2 of 2)

: to make (something) available to be used : to provide someone or something with (something that is needed or wanted)

See the full definition for supply in the English Language Learners Dictionary

supply

verb

sup·ply | \ sə-ˈplī

supplied; supplying

Kids Definition of supply

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to provide for : satisfy There is enough to supply the demand.

2 : to make available : furnish The tree supplies shade.

supply

noun

plural supplies

Kids Definition of supply (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : the amount of something that is needed or can be gotten medical supplies

2 : store entry 2 sense 3 I keep a supply of pencils in my desk.

3 : the act or process of providing something The company is engaged in the supply of raw materials.

supply

transitive verb

sup·ply | \ sə-ˈplī

supplied; supplying

Medical Definition of supply

: to furnish (organs, tissues, or cells) with a vital element (as blood or nerve fibers) —used of nerves and blood vessels the mandibular foramen transmits blood vessels and nerves supplying the lower teeth

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