adequately

American

[ad-i-kwit-lee] / ˈæd ɪ kwɪt li /

adverb

in a way that is sufficient, suitable, effective, or appropriate.

The professor’s vague response failed to adequately answer our questions.
The clinic needs to be appropriately staffed with permanently employed and adequately trained personnel.

Other Word Forms

preadequately adverb
quasi-adequately adverb
superadequately adverb

Etymology

Origin of adequately

adequate ( def. ) + -ly

Explanation

Something has been done adequately when basic requirements are fulfilled. Passing your driver's test probably means you parallel parked adequately; if not, you may have knocked over some cones. The adverb adequately is a synonym for sufficiently, or suitably. If you've adequately fulfilled your course requirements, you're probably neither the best nor the worst student in the class. But you've definitely done well enough that you can pass — so doing something adequately is generally a positive thing, unless you're an overachiever, in which case you might not like that description at all!

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Vocabulary lists containing adequately

The Giver

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Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie

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Word Generation Weekly - Series 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.

But in a statement this year, Mr. Rousseau admitted he is still “unable to express myself adequately in French.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

"Despite many lessons over several years, unfortunately, I am still unable to express myself adequately in French," he said in a statement.

From Barron's • Mar. 30, 2026

Among other faults, he noted, the plaintiff’s lawyers never adequately fessed up to their wrongdoing.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 27, 2026

Adult children who received generous gifts early, only to find themselves supporting parents financially in their 80s because the parents didn’t adequately plan for healthcare costs or longevity.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

“Well, Mr. Portman,” she said briskly, “I think you’ve been adequately interrogated. You must have questions of your own.”

From "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023