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enough

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adjective

enough

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noun

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective enough contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of enough are adequate, competent, and sufficient. While all these words mean "being what is necessary or desirable," enough is less exact in suggestion than sufficient.

do you have enough food?

When would adequate be a good substitute for enough?

Although the words adequate and enough have much in common, adequate may imply barely meeting a requirement.

the service was adequate

When is it sensible to use competent instead of enough?

The words competent and enough can be used in similar contexts, but competent suggests measuring up to all requirements without question or being adequately adapted to an end.

had no competent notion of what was going on

When is sufficient a more appropriate choice than enough?

The synonyms sufficient and enough are sometimes interchangeable, but sufficient suggests a close meeting of a need.

sufficient savings

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of enough
Adverb
Most of the conventional explanations for why a campaign fails — things like messaging choices, or whether candidates campaigned enough in the right places — cannot account for such a sweeping shift. Vox Staff, Vox, 6 Nov. 2024 Cytochrome c oxidase is a gene sequence critical enough to be conserved and nearly identical across individuals, but slight variations mean the gene can be used to easily distinguish between species. Lauren Leffer, Popular Science, 6 Nov. 2024
Adjective
There are not enough copies at all of our polling locations. Arlyssa D. Becenti, The Arizona Republic, 6 Nov. 2024 Meanwhile, medical experts are raising concerns, saying that there are not enough data about the effects of such weight loss drugs on those with lower BMIs and that the consequences of such off-label use remain largely unknown. Jackie Snow, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for enough 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for enough
Adverb
  • Humans are pretty tiny creatures living on a really large sphere.
    Discover Magazine, Discover Magazine, 15 Nov. 2024
  • Everyone seemed to know that a second adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’s landmark comic was a pretty foolish endeavor, most of all showrunner Damon Lindelof.
    Joshua Rivera, Vulture, 13 Nov. 2024
Adverb
  • His mimicry of Satchmo, the baseline test all these shows must pass, really is quite impressive.
    Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 11 Nov. 2024
  • Just like many areas that saw a surge of visitors seeking outdoor adventure during COVID, Sedona’s popularity—which was already quite high—soared further.
    Erin Strout, Outside Online, 11 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Impressive, and more than sufficient to be called genuinely all-day battery life.
    Brian Westover, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
  • While this method hasn’t led to sufficient suppression of mosquito populations, the study authors expressed hope that their gene editing strategy might help increase its effectiveness.
    Sharon Udasin, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2024
Noun
  • Here, the Kremlin is likely to adopt an approach that corresponds with the Soviet principle of reasonable sufficiency.
    Dmitry Adamsky, Foreign Affairs, 1 Oct. 2015
  • And as climate change supercharges hurricanes, which are fueled by warm water and air, the sufficiency of the system's five categories is increasingly coming into question.
    Alec Luhn, WIRED, 9 Oct. 2024
Adverb
  • Drug makers are, however, required to disclose potential dangers—and disclosure is at the heart of patient lawsuits, with users claiming they were not adequately warned about gastroparesis or other complications.
    Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 4 Nov. 2024
  • The results of both the October ballots and Sunday’s runoff were indeed dogged by allegations of a major vote-buying scheme, Russian interference, and voter intimidation — which exposed Moldova’s judiciary as unable to adequately protect the democratic process.
    Stephen McGrath and Nicolae Dumitrache, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
Adverb
  • The Arctic's relatively sluggish sea ice growth since the start of winter follows a summer that ended with the sixth lowest minimum extent on record.
    Tom Yulsman, Discover Magazine, 8 Nov. 2024
  • Design: The Differences Are Down to Nano-Textures This part of the review is relatively easy to write: Apple changed nothing about its MacBook Pro laptop design except for the optional nano-texture display and the move to Thunderbolt 5 connectivity.
    PCMAG, PCMAG, 7 Nov. 2024
Adverb
  • Prohibiting smoking is the only way to fully protect us from secondhand smoke exposure.
    David Stempel, The Mercury News, 9 Nov. 2024
  • These flashbacks are presented without audio, as though the sound of Jonathan’s voice and Catherine’s own crying are too excruciating to fully recall.
    Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 8 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Ouster's liquidity remains adequate with cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments totaling $153.8 million as of September 30, 2024.
    Quartz Bot, Quartz, 8 Nov. 2024
  • This could present a problem for coverage and access given that in its review of the evidence, an Institute for Clinical and Economic Review panel voted 10-2 that the current evidence is adequate to show a net health benefit when compared to Abilify. MORE FOR YOU Trump Vs.
    Joshua P. Cohen, Forbes, 5 Nov. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near enough

Cite this Entry

“Enough.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/enough. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.

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