suffice

[suh-fahys, -fahyz]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR suffice ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), suf·ficed, suf·fic·ing.

to be enough or adequate, as for needs, purposes, etc.

verb (used with object), suf·ficed, suf·fic·ing.

to be enough or adequate for; satisfy.

Origin of suffice

1275–1325; Middle English sufficen < Latin sufficere to supply, suffice, equivalent to suf- suf- + -ficere, combining form of facere to make, do¹; replacing Middle English suffisen < Old French < Latin, as above

Related formsun·suf·fic·ing, adjective

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

Related Words for suffice

satisfy, do, serve, content, suit, answer, meet, avail

Examples from the Web for suffice

Contemporary Examples of suffice

Suffice to say, there is finally a light at the end of the tunnel in Liberia.
How Liberia (Might Have) Beat Ebola
Abby Haglage
November 17, 2014
Suffice it to say, we hoped, with Governor Richardson as our veteran QB, to advance the ball down the field a bit.
Pyongyang Primer: Kenneth Bae Comes Home
Kevin Bleyer
November 15, 2014
Concerning argument, suffice it to say that, once started, no matter how terrible the cost, it was successful.
Blood in the Sand: When James Jones Wrote a Grunt’s View of D-Day
James Jones
November 15, 2014
Suffice it to say that Radcliffe put an Avada Kedavra spell on the song, because he absolutely killed it!
Harry Potter Raps, The Catcalls Heard ‘Round the World and More Viral Videos
Alex Chancey
November 2, 2014
There will be some people who think, “I wish they touched on it more,” and some people where it will suffice.
Octavia Spencer on Hollywood and Race: The Film Roles I’m Offered Are Too Small
Marlow Stern
July 31, 2014

Historical Examples of suffice

"Certes, Stephen Hapgood, his wisdom doth not suffice," cried the other.
The White Company
Arthur Conan Doyle
Passages taken at haphazard will suffice to establish my contention.
The Man Shakespeare
Frank Harris
Suffice it to record the fact that these relics are admittedly pre-Christian.
The Non-Christian Cross
John Denham Parsons
Now then, Mr. Beaufort, we have the witness, but will that suffice us?
Night and Morning, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
And the question, then, will be, how far that witness will suffice?
Night and Morning, Complete
Edward Bulwer-Lytton

British Dictionary definitions for suffice

suffice

verb

to be adequate or satisfactory for (something)

suffice it to say that (takes a clause as object) let us say no more than that; I shall just say that

Derived Formssufficer, noun

Word Origin for suffice

C14: from Old French suffire, from Latin sufficere from sub- below + facere to make

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 suffice

early 14c., from stem of Old French souffire "be sufficient," from Latin sufficere "supply, suffice," from sub "up to" (see sub-) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Phrase suffice it to say (late 14c.) is a rare surviving subjunctive.