as in independence
the ability to care for one's self self-sufficiency is a goal that all teenagers should work towards

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of self-sufficiency The quiet denouncement of Bob’s martyrdom complex points to people of color’s self-sufficiency. Robert Daniels, Time, 10 Oct. 2025 Grant proposals must serve a community need, be technically and economically feasible, ensure that all those actively involved in the project will benefit from the results, and foster self-sufficiency. News Release, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Oct. 2025 Pivot toward those, or just flee to the woods to pursue a kind of neo-Amish, anti-tech self-sufficiency. Kyle Chayka, New Yorker, 8 Oct. 2025 Many families facing real but invisible barriers to work need additional support in order to achieve lasting stability and self-sufficiency. Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for self-sufficiency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-sufficiency
Noun
  • As this brief survey suggests, the patriots’ success in drawing foreign partners into the war was essential to achieving American independence.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
  • The forest for the trees Nestled between China, India and Thailand, Myanmar gained independence from Britain in 1948 but came under military dictatorship in 1962.
    Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Across the eight-episode first season, the Crutchfields navigate living under one roof while trying to maintain their own autonomy.
    Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 3 Nov. 2025
  • The plea—legally impossible but symbolically potent—highlights the limits of judicial authority over prison placements, the strain of the mental health crises inside the federal system, and the uneasy intersection between acts of political violence and debates about personal autonomy at life’s end.
    Robert Alexander, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Beijing calls for ‘extraordinary measures’ toward self-reliance Chinese authorities outlined plans to increase the country’s self-reliance and deepen its dominance of manufacturing.
    Ben Smith, semafor.com, 31 Oct. 2025
  • Although self-reliance is Africa’s goal, the challenge is achieving true autonomy without structural transformation of nations that remain highly unproductive.
    Charlie Campbell, Time, 30 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Self-sufficiency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-sufficiency. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.

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