enough

[ ih-nuhf ]

/ ɪˈnʌf /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR enough ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

adequate for the want or need; sufficient for the purpose or to satisfy desire: enough water; noise enough to wake the dead.

pronoun

an adequate quantity or number; sufficiency.

adverb

in a quantity or degree that answers a purpose or satisfies a need or desire; sufficiently.

fully or quite: ready enough.

interjection

(used to express impatience or exasperation): Enough! I heard you the first time.

Nearby words

Origin of enough

before 900; Middle English enogh, Old English genōh; cognate with German genug, Gothic ganohs, Old Norse nōgr; akin to Old English geneah it suffices, Sanskrit naśati (he) reaches

SYNONYMS FOR enough

1. ample. 3. adequately, amply, reasonably.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR enough ON THESAURUS.COM

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for enough

Grindr currently has twelve ‘tribes,’ and for some people this just is not enough.
Grindr’s Trans Dating Problem|David Levesley|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
He added: “People say he deserves his day in court… Do we have enough time?”
Bill Maher: Hundreds of Millions of Muslims Support Attack on ‘Charlie Hebdo’|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I had enough experiences around languages that it just sort of happened.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
“Competition is there, of course, but I think there is enough business for everyone as long as the demand is there,” he says.
Ghost Ships of the Mediterranean|Barbie Latza Nadeau|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST

The Air Force has enough MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones.
Exclusive: U.S. Drone Fleet at ‘Breaking Point,’ Air Force Says|Dave Majumdar|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But for the present I think we have enough men for this expedition.
For the Liberty of Texas|Edward Stratemeyer
So I still beg for the minutes: your walks take up hours enough.
Piano and Song|Friedrich Wieck
There is enough for all to have a good amount to eat, which often is nt.
The Story of Opal|Opal Whiteley
Presenty there was a little light—not much, but enough to mark clearly the dim outlines of the trees.
Wang the Ninth|Putnam Weale
Them poor horses 'll have enough of it, if the others don't.
A Life's Secret|Mrs. Henry Wood

British Dictionary definitions for enough

enough

/ (ɪˈnʌf) /

determiner

sufficient to answer a need, demand, supposition, or requirement; adequateenough cake
(as pronoun)enough is now known

that's enough! that will do: used to put an end to an action, speech, performance, etc

adverb

so as to be adequate or sufficient; as much as necessaryyou have worked hard enough

(not used with a negative) very or quite; rathershe was pleased enough to see me

(intensifier)oddly enough; surprisingly enough

just adequately; tolerablyhe did it well enough

Word Origin for enough

Old English genōh; related to Old Norse gnōgr, Gothic ganōhs, Old High German ginuog

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

Word Origin and History for enough

enough

adj.

c.1300, from Old English genog, a common Germanic formation (cf. Old Saxon ginog, Old Frisian enoch, Dutch genoeg, Old High German ginuog, German genug, Old Norse gnogr, Gothic ganohs).

This is a compound of ge- "with, together" (also a participial, collective, intensive, or perfective prefix) + root -nah, from PIE *nek- "reach, attain" (cf. Sanskrit asnoti "reaches," Hittite ninikzi "lifts, raises," Lithuanian nešti "to bear, carry," Latin nancisci "to obtain").

It is the most prominent among the surviving examples of Old English ge-, the equivalent of Latin com- and Modern German ge-, from PIE *kom- "beside, near, by, with" (see com-).

Meaning "moderately, fairly, tolerably" (good enough) was in Middle English. Understated sense of have had enough "have had too much" was in Old English (which relied heavily on double negatives and understatement). Colloquial 'nough said is attested from 1839.

Idioms and Phrases with enough

enough

In addition to the idioms beginning with enough

enough is enough
enough rope, give someone
enough said
enough to sink a ship

also see:

fair enough
had enough
leave well enough alone
not enough room to swing a cat
sure enough
(enough) to wake the dead

enough

adjective

pronoun

adverb

interjection

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of enough

Examples from the Web for enough

enough

determiner

adverb

Word Origin for enough

enough

enough