Dictionary.com

adequate

[ ad-i-kwit ]
/ ˈæd ɪ kwɪt /
Save This Word!
See synonyms for: adequate / adequately / adequateness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
as much or as good as necessary for some requirement or purpose; fully sufficient, suitable, or fit (often followed by to or for): This car is adequate to our needs.They’ll provide adequate food for fifty people.
barely sufficient or suitable: Being adequate is not good enough.
Law. reasonably sufficient for starting legal action: adequate grounds.
QUIZ
ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ
There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!
Question 1 of 7
True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

Origin of adequate

First recorded in 1610–20; from Latin adaequātus “matched” (past participle of adaequāre ); see ad-, equal, -ate1

OTHER WORDS FROM adequate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use adequate in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for adequate

adequate
/ (ˈædɪkwɪt) /

adjective
able to fulfil a need or requirement without being abundant, outstanding, etc

Derived forms of adequate

adequacy (ˈædɪkwəsɪ), nounadequately, adverb

Word Origin for adequate

C17: from Latin adaequāre to equalize, from ad- to + aequus equal
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
FEEDBACK