affordable
Americanadjective
noun
Usage
What does affordable mean? If something is affordable, it means its price is low enough that you (or most people) have enough money to buy it. Affordable is the adjective form of the verb afford. If you can afford something, you have enough money to pay for it. Much less commonly, affordable can be used as a noun meaning an item that one can afford. Example: Rachel wants to buy a luxury car, but with her budget I think she should consider a more affordable option.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of affordable
Explanation
If something is affordable, it's priced reasonably, and you have enough money to buy it. Your friends might be jealous that the bike you bought at a yard sale was so affordable. If you live in an affordable city, it means that rents aren't too high for most of its residents, and if you buy an affordable dinner for yourself, it doesn't cost too much. The adjective affordable can either mean "cheap," or it can imply that even if it's expensive, you have enough money to easily buy it. The verb afford is at the root, and its earliest meaning was "accomplish." Gradually, afford came to have the meaning "manage to buy."
Vocabulary lists containing affordable
Michelle Obama's final address as First Lady (2017)
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History is made in PA: Clinton's DNC Acceptance Speech
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for May 7–May 13, 2022
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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.
"This approach will make immunotherapy at McGill University Health Centre faster, safer and more affordable," added Chu-Han Feng, a research scientist at the Rosalind & Morris Goodman Cancer Institute.
From Science Daily • May 25, 2026
Huang said she would also invest more heavily in addressing the city’s lack of affordable housing, which she said is an underlying cause of crime and homelessness.
From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2026
For years, housing analysts have referenced more homes for sale as a key to making the market more affordable.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 24, 2026
"That was an affordable way I could make crazy things like an alien and a spaceship. I wasn't thinking about a career - animation was just something I wanted to do for fun."
From BBC • May 22, 2026
We bounced around from house to house, usually opting for the more affordable and less desirable parts of town.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
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.
