supply

[ suh-plahy ]

/ səˈplaɪ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR supply ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), sup·plied, sup·ply·ing.

to furnish or provide (a person, establishment, place, etc.) with what is lacking or requisite: to supply someone clothing; to supply a community with electricity.

to furnish or provide (something wanting or requisite): to supply electricity to a community.

to make up, compensate for, or satisfy (a deficiency, loss, need, etc.): The TVA supplied the need for cheap electricity.

to fill or occupy as a substitute, as a vacancy, a pulpit, etc.: During the summer local clergymen will supply the pulpit.

verb (used without object), sup·plied, sup·ply·ing.

to fill the place of another, especially the pulpit of a church, temporarily or as a substitute: Who will supply until the new minister arrives?

noun, plural sup·plies.

the act of supplying, furnishing, providing, satisfying, etc.: to begin the supply of household help.

something that is supplied: The storm cut off our water supply.

a quantity of something on hand or available, as for use; a stock or store: Did you see our new supply of shirts?

Usually supplies. a provision, stock, or store of food or other things necessary for maintenance: to lay in supplies for the winter.

Economics. the quantity of a commodity that is in the market and available for purchase or that is available for purchase at a particular price.

supplies, Military.

all items necessary for the equipment, maintenance, and operation of a military command, including food, clothing, arms, ammunition, fuel, materials, and machinery.
procurement, distribution, maintenance, and salvage of supplies.

a person who fills a vacancy or takes the place of another, especially temporarily.

supplies. Obsolete. reinforcement(def 4).

Obsolete. aid.

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decorum

the act of or need for making up one's mind.

dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.

a company of singers, especially an organized group employed in church service.

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Origin of supply

1325–75; (v.) Middle English sup(p)lien < Middle French souplier, variant of soupleer ≪ Latin supplēre to fill up, equivalent to sup- sup- + plēre to fill (see full¹); (noun) late Middle English: aid, succor, derivative of the v.

OTHER WORDS FROM supply

sup·pli·er, nounun·sup·plied, adjectivewell-sup·plied, adjective

Words nearby supply

suppliant, suppliants, the, supplicant, supplicate, supplication, supply, supply and demand, supply chain, supply teacher, supply-side, supply-side economics

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for supplier

MK Chambers Company Michigan-based supplier of specialty machining.
The 26 Next Hobby Lobbys|Abby Haglage|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
MK Chambers Company Michigan-based supplier of specialty machining.
After Hobby Lobby, These 82 Corporations Could Drop Birth Control Coverage|Abby Haglage|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
MN Plastics Michigan-based supplier of custom injection molding products.
After Hobby Lobby, These 82 Corporations Could Drop Birth Control Coverage|Abby Haglage|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
About 90 cents goes to the supplier and about 50 cents goes to the troop.
Why Are Girl Scout Camps Being Closed?|Alessandra Rafferty|January 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Cree is primarily a supplier to commercial and industrial users.
Why You Should Give LED Light Bulbs for Christmas. Seriously.|Daniel Gross|December 4, 2013|DAILY BEAST
To want to be loved means usually to want some one to be a protector, a giver of pleasure, a supplier of wants.
What a Young Woman Ought to Know|Mary Wood-Allen
He fed heavily on porridge, and was a cook (supplier of food) as well as a king.
Ancient Man in Britain|Donald A. (Donald Alexander) Mackenzie
Would not "purchaser" or "buyer," and "supplyman" or "supplier," be better terms?
Letters from an Old Railway Official|Charles DeLano Hine
Some countries publish the minutes of the tender committee (which has to explain WHY it selected this or that supplier).
After the Rain|Sam Vaknin
First, as to its value as a supplier of the necessary elements of plant-food.
Manures and the principles of manuring|Charles Morton Aikman

British Dictionary definitions for supplier (1 of 2)

supply¹

/ (səˈplaɪ) /

verb -plies, -plying or -plied

(tr often foll by with) to furnish with something that is requiredto supply the community with good government

(tr; often foll by to or for) to make available or provide (something that is desired or lacking)to supply books to the library

(tr) to provide for adequately; make good; satisfywho will supply their needs?

to serve as a substitute, usually temporary, in (another's position, etc)there are no clergymen to supply the pulpit

(tr) British to fill (a vacancy, position, etc)

noun plural -plies

the act of providing or something that is provided
(as modifier)a supply dump

(often plural) an amount available for use; stock

(plural) food, equipment, etc, needed for a campaign or trip

economics

willingness and ability to offer goods and services for sale
the amount of a commodity that producers are willing and able to offer for sale at a specified priceCompare demand (def. 9)

military

the management and disposal of food and equipment
(as modifier)supply routes

(often plural) a grant of money voted by a legislature for government expenses, esp those not covered by other revenues

(in Parliament and similar legislatures) the money voted annually for the expenses of the civil service and armed forces

a person who acts as a temporary substitute
(as modifier)a supply vicar

a source of electrical energy, gas, etc

obsolete aid or assistance

Derived forms of supply

suppliable, adjectivesupplier, noun

Word Origin for supply

C14: from Old French souppleier, from Latin supplēre to complete, from sub- up + plēre to fill

British Dictionary definitions for supplier (2 of 2)

supply²

supplely (ˈsʌpəlɪ)

/ (ˈsʌplɪ) /

adverb

in a supple manner

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

Cultural definitions for supplier

supply

The amount of any given commodity available for sale at a given time.

Idioms and Phrases with supplier

supply

see in short supply.

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WORD OF THE DAY

supply

verb (used with object), sup·plied, sup·ply·ing.