sufficiency
Americannoun
-
the state or fact of being sufficient; adequacy.
-
a sufficient number or amount; enough.
-
adequate provision or supply, especially of wealth.
noun
-
the quality or condition of being sufficient
-
an adequate amount or quantity, as of income
-
archaic efficiency
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sufficiency
1485–95; < Late Latin sufficientia; see sufficient, -ency
Explanation
A sufficiency is an adequate amount of something. Before a winter storm, you should probably make sure you have a sufficiency of food stored in your house. The noun sufficiency means the quality of being enough, adequate, or sufficient. Due to financial constraints, your local school district may be willing to settle for educational sufficiency, but hopefully you will hold the district to a higher standard than offering merely an adequate education to students. The opposite of sufficiency is insufficiency, meaning an inadequate amount. Of the two, you will likely hear insufficiency more often than sufficiency in conversation.
Vocabulary lists containing sufficiency
Skellig
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Classical Period, c. 600 BCE to c. 600 CE
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
2.1: Classical Empires in East Asia (Sources 1–8)
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
They also reported bigger drops in food sufficiency among adults ages 25 to 44, who tend to be higher-propensity sport bettors compared with other age groups.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 10, 2026
As for threats, when you resort to them, you’re revealing you are uncertain of the sufficiency of your power.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 9, 2026
"I'm a sleep physiologist who understands the health benefits of sleep, but the strength of the association between sleep sufficiency and life expectancy was remarkable to me."
From Science Daily ● Jan. 10, 2026
They said this was due to the lack of a joint strategic needs assessment, sufficiency plans to address this issue have not been adequate or timely.
From BBC ● Nov. 15, 2024
Mom nodded at all our preparations; she’d always appreciated self- sufficiency.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
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.
