Word origins - 2ed. J. Ayto. 2005.
Sufficient — Suf*fi cient, a. [L. sufficiens, entis, p. pr. of sufficere: cf. F. suffisant. See {Suffice}.] 1. Equal to the end proposed; adequate to wants; enough; ample; competent; as, provision sufficient for the family; an army sufficient to defend the… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
sufficient — suf·fi·cient adj: enough to meet the needs under the law of a situation or a proposed end suf·fi·cient·ly adv Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam Webster. 1996. sufficient … Law dictionary
sufficient — [sə fish′ənt] adj. [ME < L sufficiens, prp. of sufficere: see SUFFICE] 1. as much as is needed; equal to what is specified or required; enough 2. competent; well qualified; able sufficiently adv. SYN. SUFFICIENT and ENOUGH agree in describing… … English World dictionary
sufficient — early 14c., from O.Fr. sufficient, from L. sufficiens, prp. of sufficere (see SUFFICE (Cf. suffice)) … Etymology dictionary
sufficient — [adj] enough, adequate acceptable, agreeable, all right*, ample, aplenty, appreciate, comfortable, commensurable, commensurate, common, competent, copious, decent, due, galore, pleasing, plenteous, plentiful, plenty, proportionate, satisfactory,… … New thesaurus
sufficient — ► ADJECTIVE & DETERMINER ▪ enough; adequate. DERIVATIVES sufficiently adverb … English terms dictionary
sufficient — 01. Two hours should be [sufficient] time to finish the work. 02. Mark hadn t [sufficiently] cleaned the carpet, so we could still see the wine stains. 03. I question the [sufficiency] of a single one quart bottle of water for a half day hike on… … Grammatical examples in English
sufficient — adj. 1) sufficient for 2) sufficient unto oneself ( independent ) 3) sufficient to + inf. (it would have been sufficient to send a brief note) * * * [sə fɪʃ(ə)nt] sufficient for sufficient unto oneself ( independent ) sufficient to + inf. (it… … Combinatory dictionary
sufficient — adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Latin sufficient , sufficiens, from present participle of sufficere Date: 14th century 1. a. enough to meet the needs of a situation or a proposed end < sufficient provisions for a month > b. being a… … New Collegiate Dictionary
sufficient — suf|fi|cient W2S2 [səˈfıʃənt] adj formal [Date: 1300 1400; : Latin; Origin: , present participle of sufficere; SUFFICE] as much as is needed for a particular purpose = ↑enough ≠ ↑insufficient ▪ We can only prosecute if there is sufficient… … Dictionary of contemporary English
sufficient — enough, sufficient, sufficiently 1. Enough functions as both an adjective and an adverb, whereas sufficient requires modification as sufficiently. As an adjective (or modifier), enough will normally serve, but sufficient is more idiomatic when a… … Modern English usage
