suit
Americannoun
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suits
plural
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a set of clothing, armor, or the like, intended for wear together.
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a set of men's garments of the same color and fabric, consisting of trousers, a jacket, and sometimes a vest.
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a similarly matched set consisting of a skirt and jacket, and sometimes a topcoat or blouse, worn by women.
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any costume worn for some special activity.
a running suit.
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Slang. Often suits an executive, manager, or official, especially one regarded as a faceless decision maker.
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Law. the act, the process, or an instance of suing in a court of law; legal prosecution; lawsuit.
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Cards.
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one of the four sets or classes (spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs) into which a common deck of playing cards is divided.
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the aggregate of cards belonging to one of these sets held in a player's hand at one time.
Spades were his long suit.
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one of various sets or classes into which less common decks of cards are divided, as lances, hammers, etc., found in certain decks formerly used or used in fortune telling.
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the wooing or courting of a woman.
She rejected his suit.
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the act of making a petition or an appeal.
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a petition, as to a person of rank or station.
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Also called set. Nautical. a complete group of sails for a boat.
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one of the seven classes into which a standard set of 28 dominoes may be divided by matching the numbers on half the face of each: a three suit contains the 3-blank, 3-1, 3-2, 3-3, 3-4, 3-5, and 3-6. Since each such suit contains one of each of the other possible suits, only one complete suit is available per game.
verb (used with object)
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suits,
present (3rd person singular)
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suited,
past participle, past
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suiting
present participle
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to make appropriate, adapt, or accommodate, as one thing to another.
to suit the punishment to the crime.
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to be appropriate or becoming to.
Blue suits you very well.
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to be or prove satisfactory, agreeable, or acceptable to; satisfy or please.
The arrangements suit me.
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to provide with a suit, as of clothing or armor; clothe; array.
verb (used without object)
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suits,
present (3rd person singular)
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suited,
past participle, past
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suiting
present participle
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to be appropriate or suitable; accord.
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to be satisfactory, agreeable, or acceptable.
verb phrase
idioms
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follow suit,
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Cards. to play a card of the same suit as that led.
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to follow the example of another.
The girl jumped over the fence, and her playmates followed suit.
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suit oneself, to do what one wants to do or what is best for oneself, without regard for others (often used imperatively).
I don’t agree with you, but okay, suit yourself.
noun
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any set of clothes of the same or similar material designed to be worn together, now usually (for men) a jacket with matching trousers or (for women) a jacket with matching or contrasting skirt or trousers
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(in combination) any outfit worn for a specific purpose
a spacesuit
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any set of items, such as the full complement of sails of a vessel or parts of personal armour
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any of the four sets of 13 cards in a pack of playing cards, being spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs. The cards in each suit are two to ten, jack, queen, and king in the usual order of ascending value, with ace counting as either the highest or lowest according to the game
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a civil proceeding; lawsuit
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the act or process of suing in a court of law
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a petition or appeal made to a person of superior rank or status or the act of making such a petition
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slang a business executive or white-collar manager
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a man's courting of a woman
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to play a card of the same suit as the card played immediately before it
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to act in the same way as someone else
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something that one excels in
verb
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to make or be fit or appropriate for
that dress suits you
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to meet the requirements or standards (of)
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to be agreeable or acceptable to (someone)
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to pursue one's own intentions without reference to others
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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suitsimple
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suitssimple
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have suitedperfect
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has suitedperfect
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am suitingprogressive
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are suitingprogressive
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is suitingprogressive
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have been suitingperfect progressive
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has been suitingperfect progressive
Past
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suitedsimple
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had suitedperfect
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was suitingprogressive
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were suitingprogressive
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had been suitingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of suit
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English siute, sute, suite (noun), from Anglo-French, Old French, akin to sivre (modern French, suivre ) “to follow”; see sue, suite
Explanation
Among many other meanings, a suit is a jacket and pants that match — formalwear for men. Suits are well-suited (appropriate) for some jobs and formal events, like a funeral. A suit is also short for a lawsuit — like when you file a suit against a doctor who removed the wrong kidney. A suit is also an appeal to someone who has something you want — like money or affection. In cards, the suits are hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs. If a hat looks good on you, it suits you. In fact, you can say of just about anything you like, "That suits me." Like a well-fitting suit, when something suits you, you enjoy it and feel comfortable with it.
Vocabulary lists containing suit
Orbiting Jupiter
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Units 2–3
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"When Cultures Meet"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
New York prosecutors reopened an investigation this week after she filed a recent civil suit, which accused the university of failing to protect her after she reported the incident to campus police at the time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
On September 16, nearly two years after the initial report, Jane Doe filed her suit against Cornell.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
And so EU member states are selecting strategic partners that they believe suit their national needs, even if that alienates or irritates fellow member states.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
The suit also raises a number of other claims that will have major implications.
From Slate ● Oct. 1, 2026
The woman was wearing a smart suit, and her short hair was brushed back in waves, though she looked even older than my ma.
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
Zaidi, who dresses in dark blue suits and has a bushy black mustache and cropped beard, was quickly embraced by Washington.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
She has infused her suits and dresses with yellow, red, purple, or floral prints, keeping them structured yet light.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
Everyone looks like they’re wearing suits from Temu.
From Slate ● Sep. 26, 2026
But Ryan, a Wolves fan in Banbury, said "a solution that suits everybody" is to provide designated areas for drinking in stands.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
Now, for the first time—as if it were Halloween or a day at a Disney theme park—Huang Yan’s team don their panda suits whenever they enter the enclosure to clean it or deliver bamboo.
From "Camp Panda" by Catherine Thimmesh
She isn’t suited to caring and she doesn’t wish to fill her head with the minutiae of modern dying.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026
Blacktip sharks were especially well suited for the experiment because they gather predictably off Southeast Florida.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
"Gold mining suited everyone," one young resident said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Saving the day has never totally suited him — he’s too sharp and ambitious.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 29, 2026
This suited Lilya just fine: she liked to do as she pleased.
From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein
Glasner tends to prefer playing without the ball – his Crystal Palace team averaged 46% possession last season – while the Austrian also likes to attack directly at pace, suiting Delap's natural assets.
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
Now that he’s been benched, Tagovailoa knows he may be suiting up somewhere else next season.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 23, 2025
As well as suiting her needs, the aviary was also designed to give the flock more space and more opportunities for free flight.
From BBC ● Dec. 9, 2025
Our critic explained that “While ‘superfine’ is a tailor’s term for the best wool suiting fabric, in the context of this show it is also dandiacal black vernacular for ‘stylin’ out.’”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2025
Though I had neither means nor reason to keep a horse, I knew good from bad, and nothing I saw here came close to suiting my needs.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
