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

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

But saying a high replacement rate of a very low income (which is what incomes are right before retirement typically) is surely a poor way to judge sufficiency. —Teresa Ghilarducci, Forbes, 22 Sep. 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