supply

verb sup·ply \ sə-ˈplī \

|Updated on: 12 Aug 2018

Examples: supply in a Sentence

Definition of supply

supplied; supplying

transitive verb

1 : to add as a supplement

[Middle French souploier, alteration of soupplier]

a : to provide for : satisfy

laws by which the material wants of men are supplied
—Bulletin of Bates College

b : to make available for use : provide

supplied the necessary funds

c : to satisfy the needs or wishes of

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

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

intransitive verb

: to serve as a supply or substitute

—

supplier

play \sə-ˈplī(-ə)r\ noun

See supply defined for English-language learners

See supply defined for kids

Examples of supply in a Sentence

The company supplied the necessary money.
You'll have to supply your own food.

Recent Examples of supply from the Web

After that, Pueblo would still need to figure out how to supply the city with renewable energy, which comes with its own set of challenges.

— justin worland/pueblo, Time, "How One Industrial City Is Fighting to Go Green," 12 July 2018
As in a battery being charged, charged ions flow between two electrodes supplied with electricity.

— robert f. service, Science | AAAS, "Ammonia—a renewable fuel made from sun, air, and water—could power the globe without carbon," 12 July 2018
So too was the alternative of keeping the boys and their coach in the cave supplied with provisions until the waters receded.

— NBC News, "First boys emerge from Thailand cave as rescue mission enters final act," 8 July 2018
From the outset of Dubus’s career Godine was responsible for publishing him, supplying readers with handsome editions of the majority of his canon — Dubus would switch to the larger, richer Knopf near the end of his career due to financial concerns.

— BostonGlobe.com, "A writer’s writer and the inevitability of bad times," 6 July 2018
After California became the first state to ban single-use plastic bags in 2016, the Dehmoubeds jumped on the opportunity to supply shoppers with a new way to pack their groceries.

— ethan millman, latimes.com, "How one couple turned grocery bagging into a fast-growing business," 29 June 2018
The Russian government, in return, was said to supply Trump with secrets about his political rivals while collecting compromising information on him, including recording him with prostitutes who supposedly urinated on a bed in a Moscow hotel.

— Washington Post, "Some questions in Trump-Russia dossier now finding answers," 29 June 2018
In 2007, an inmate reported to the watchdog agency that the guard was supplying inmates with contraband.

— john h. tucker, Daily Intelligencer, "Rape at Rosie’s," 26 June 2018
Almost all police departments in the county intend to supply their officers with naloxone, including the police forces for some universities and colleges.

— david hernandez, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Use of drug that reverses overdoses to expand to police, school campuses," 11 June 2018

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.

Origin and Etymology of supply

Middle English supplien to complete, compensate for, from Middle French soupplier, from Latin supplēre to fill up, complete, raise (a military unit, crew) to its full complement, substitute, from sub- up + plēre to fill — more at sub-, full

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

supply Synonyms

supply

noun

Definition of supply

plural supplies

1 obsolete : assistance, succor

2 a obsolete : reinforcements —often used in plural

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

c : the quantity or amount (as of a commodity) needed or available

beer was in short supply in that hot weather
—Nevil Shute

d : provisions, stores —usually used in plural

3 : the act or process of filling a want or need

engaged in the supply of raw materials to industry

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

5 : something that maintains or constitutes a supply

See supply defined for English-language learners

Examples of supply in a Sentence

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.

Recent Examples of supply from the Web

Power and water outages were common, and damage to roads and railway tracks disrupted deliveries of food and relief supplies.

— Fox News, "Thousands still in shelters after deadly flooding in Japan," 13 July 2018
Money raised via GoFundMe has offset the cost of Winx's food, other supplies and ongoing medical care.

— holly v. hays, Indianapolis Star, "Dog found shot, covered in bleach adopted by IMPD officer who rescued him," 11 July 2018
This includes a support vehicle, manned by his 78-year-old father, that’s full of food, medical supplies, and a team of folks offering moral support.

— jonathan olivier, Outside Online, "This Teacher May Set an FKT on the Appalachian Trail," 5 July 2018
The van is packed with a tent, screen tent, sleeping bags, tubs of food and supplies and campground cooking gear.

— jim stingl, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Stingl: Family's breakneck vacation is hitting every Wisconsin park and forest in one week," 26 June 2018
Last year after Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, aid groups struggled to transport food and supplies across the island, a problem made worse by the inadequate and out-of-date maps that were available.

— emily dreyfuss, WIRED, "'ICE Is Everywhere': Using Library Science to Map the Separation Crisis," 25 June 2018
Hundreds of thousands were without water, and there was a shortage of food and medical supplies.

— refinery29.com, "5 Puerto Rican Fashion Designers On Life After Hurricane María," 20 June 2018
When Russian troops entered Crimea in 2014, Sentsov was among many volunteers who brought food and supplies to Ukrainian soldiers blocking the border between mainland Ukraine and then Russian-occupied Crimea.

— sabra ayres, latimes.com, "Ukrainian film director on hunger strike in a Russian prison casts dark cloud over World Cup," 19 June 2018
The floors of the shop are strewn with food and restaurant supplies.

— jared gilmour, star-telegram, "Ice cream shop wouldn’t give her a refund. She started throwing cakes, Texas cops say," 18 June 2018

First Known Use of supply

15th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

supply Synonyms

Synonyms

budget, force, fund, inventory, pool, repertoire, reservoir, stock;

Related Words

reserve, resource;

cache, hoard, stockpile;

refill, renewal, replacement;

kitty, nest egg, pot, purse;

fountain, mine, source, spring, well, wellspring;

SUPPLY Defined for English Language Learners

supply

verb

Definition of supply for English Language Learners

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

supply

noun

Definition of supply for English Language Learners

: the amount of something that is available to be used
supplies : 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.