afford

[ uh-fawrd ]

/ əˈfɔrd /

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See synonyms for: afford / afforded / affording / affords on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

to be able to do, manage, or bear without serious consequence or adverse effect: The country can't afford another drought.

to be able to meet the expense of; have or be able to spare the price of: Can we afford a trip to Europe this year? The city can easily afford to repair the street.

to be able to give or spare: He can't afford the loss of a day.

to furnish; supply: The transaction afforded him a good profit.

to be capable of yielding or providing: The records afford no explanation.

to give or confer upon: to afford great pleasure to someone.

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Origin of afford

First recorded before 1050; Middle English aforthen, iforthen, Old English geforthian “to further, accomplish,” equivalent to ge- y- + forth forth + -ian infinitive suffix

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH afford

accord, afford

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use afford in a sentence

Private day camps – for those who can afford them – have sprung up to replace in-person learning, because the wheels of San Diego Unified have stopped turning.
The Learning Curve: Even With Schools Closed, State of District ‘Unstoppable’|Will Huntsberry|November 19, 2020|Voice of San Diego
Often, they sell their land and relocate to the mainland only to realize that they can’t afford much more than a shack.
Asia’s biggest climate migration|Konstantin Kakaes|November 19, 2020|MIT Technology Review
Nor am I able to afford a gift, as I have been looking for a job for more than a year.
Miss Manners: Family visit becomes one big project|Judith Martin, Nicholas Martin, Jacobina Martin|November 19, 2020|Washington Post
They may not be able to afford it or understand that they even have access to it.
Leveraging collective intelligence and AI to benefit society|Jason Sparapani|November 18, 2020|MIT Technology Review

So with even a hint that flying might be safe enough within that timescale, many people can afford to take a chance and book now.
Airlines saw an immediate boost in passenger bookings following vaccine announcements|David Meyer|November 17, 2020|Fortune
The UN methodology affords its team a little more flexibility.
ISIS Fighters Are Killing Faster than Statisticians Can Count|Peter Schwartzstein|December 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The grand jury inquiry affords opportunity to test accuracy of witness accounts.
There’s No Conspiracy in Ferguson’s Secret Jury|Paul Callan|November 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For a man who has been accused of sexual assault, celebrity affords certain privileges.
Why We're So Hard on Janay Rice and Celebrity Survivors of Abuse|Amy Zimmerman|September 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Higher socioeconomic background affords certain privileges and protections that can make for a more satisfying sexual life.
Why Do Rich Women Have Better Sex Lives?|Emily Shire|January 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If fame affords me the type of ability to do the kind of work I'm being offered, who am I to complain about the downsides.
Benedict Cumberbatch’s Revealing Reddit AMA: On Julian Assange’s Letter and Fame|Marlow Stern|October 11, 2013|DAILY BEAST
That Lannes would have emerged superior to these trials his previous career affords strong reason to presume.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
It possesses, however, one advantage; it warns the foot passenger, and affords him time to get out of the way.
A Woman's Journey Round the World|Ida Pfeiffer
The soil is sandy, and affords but little nourishment to the stunted trees with which it is furnished.
Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia] [Volume 2 of 2]|Phillip Parker King
His table is well supplied from the choicest his larder affords and he cheerfully welcomes all to its side.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Whatever reason the transaction affords for binding the former, it supplies for holding the latter bound.
The Ordinance of Covenanting|John Cunningham

British Dictionary definitions for afford

afford

/ (əˈfɔːd) /

verb

(preceded by can, could, etc) to be able to do or spare something, esp without incurring financial difficulties or without risk of undesirable consequenceswe can afford to buy a small house; I can afford to give you one of my chess sets; we can't afford to miss this play

to give, yield, or supplythe meeting afforded much useful information

Derived forms of afford

affordable, adjectiveaffordability, noun

Word Origin for afford

Old English geforthian to further, promote, from forth forth; the Old English prefix ge- was later reduced to a-, and the modern spelling (C16) is influenced by words beginning aff-

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

afford

Origin of afford

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH afford

Words related to afford

How to use afford in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for afford

Derived forms of afford

Word Origin for afford