resource
Americannoun
-
resources
plural
-
a source of supply, support, or aid, especially one that can be readily drawn upon when needed.
- Synonyms:
- service, help, assistance, support, aid
-
resources, the collective wealth of a country or its means of producing wealth.
-
Usually resources money, or any property that can be converted into money; assets.
-
Often resources an available means afforded by the mind or one's personal capabilities.
to have resource against loneliness.
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an action or measure to which one may have recourse in an emergency; expedient.
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capability in dealing with a situation or in meeting difficulties.
a woman of resource.
- Synonyms:
- ingenuity, adaptability
noun
-
capability, ingenuity, and initiative; quick-wittedness
a man of resource
-
(often plural) a source of economic wealth, esp of a country (mineral, land, labour, etc) or business enterprise (capital, equipment, personnel, etc)
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a supply or source of aid or support; something resorted to in time of need
-
a means of doing something; expedient
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of resource
First recorded in 1640–50; from French ressource, Old French ressourse, noun derivative of resourdre “to rise up,” from Latin resurgere, equivalent to re- re- + surgere “to rise up, lift”; see resurge, source
Explanation
A resource is any personal talent or outside supply that can be tapped for help or support. Resource comes from an old French word meaning "relief" or "recovery," which certainly ties in with the idea of a resource being something that offers necessary aid. However, the word resource also refers to the natural resources available in and on our Earth — things that we are constantly drawing on and depleting, such as our trees, ores, and atmosphere. Once such a natural resource is used up, it’s usually gone forever, and is no longer a resource.
Vocabulary lists containing resource
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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TEKS ELAR Academic Vocabulary List (5th-7th grades)
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List 3
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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:
Human resource professionals have expressed outrage on social media.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026
“It is unique,” Mack said of being a resource.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 2, 2026
But disinformation researchers are warning it could enable bad actors to misuse Google Earth -- a key resource for fact-checking and verification -- to create realistic geospatial fakes.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
The best resource on this is Daniel Kahneman’s “Thinking, Fast and Slow,” drawing on decades of research with Amos Tversky.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 29, 2026
Mr. Linton explained to Virgil and his parents that going to the resource room meant Virgil would get more individual attention.
From "Hello, Universe" by Erin Entrada Kelly
But El-Sayed ably weaponized these resources against Stevens, making her financial superiority the core of his argument against her.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2026
Because ambient noise tomography can survey large underground regions relatively quickly and inexpensively, it may provide a useful way to search for geothermal energy and mineral resources.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 5, 2026
Medicaid is there for people who have exhausted their own resources.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
At the news conference, Jurado appealed to Gov. Gavin Newsom to deploy additional state resources for the cleanup effort.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
As he began talking, he read his audience a quotation from WHO: “MDR is too expensive to treat in poor countries; it detracts attention and resources from treating drug-susceptible disease.”
From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French
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.
