sufficiency

noun

suf·​fi·​cien·​cy sə-ˈfi-shən(t)-sē 

plural sufficiencies

1

: sufficient means to meet one's needs : competency

also : a modest but adequate scale of living

2

: the quality or state of being sufficient : adequacy

Synonyms

• acceptability
• adequacy
• satisfactoriness

Examples of sufficiency in a Sentence

the sufficiency of the portions is such that you will leave the restaurant with a full stomach but without doggie bags

Recent Examples on the Web

These locks include critical challenges such as data sufficiency, power infrastructure, and return on investment. —Peter High, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

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

The company, sanctioned by the U.S., is positioning itself at the forefront of China’s drive for self sufficiency. —Sheryl Estrada, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

earlier sufficience in same sense (going back to Middle English, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Late Latin sufficientia, from Latin sufficient-, sufficiens sufficient + -ia -ia entry 1) + -ency

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing sufficiency

• self-sufficiency

Kids Definition

sufficiency

noun

suf·​fi·​cien·​cy sə-ˈfish-ən-sē 

plural sufficiencies

1

: sufficient means to meet one's needs

2

: the quality or state of being sufficient : adequacy

Legal Definition

sufficiency

noun

suf·​fi·​cien·​cy

: the quality or state of being sufficient

the sufficiency of the evidence to convict