suffice
/səˈfaɪs/verb
suffice is spelled S-U-F-F-I-C-E: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.9 times per million words in written English, the 15,798th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, suffice means “To be enough or sufficient; to meet the need (of anything); to be adequate; to be good enough” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in suffice?
| Letters | 7: S-U-F-F-I-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.9 times per million words; the 15,798th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is suffice?
Suffice appears 2.9 times per million words in written English, the 15,798th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce suffice?
- US /səˈfaɪs/
- UK /səˈfʌɪs/
- Canada /ˈsʌ.fɪs/
Suffice has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-suffice.ogg, En-au-suffice.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with suffice?
9 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as suffice from its last stressed vowel (/aɪs/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of suffice
- suffices present, singular, he/she/it
- sufficing participle, present
- sufficed participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does suffice mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To be enough or sufficient; to meet the need (of anything); to be adequate; to be good enough.
For this plum cake, two eggs should suffice.
- 2
To satisfy; to content; to be equal to the wants or demands of.
A joint of lamb sufficed even his enormous appetite.
- 3
archaicTo furnish; to supply adequately.
During the festival, the temple suffices food to the beggars.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Suffice in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | suffire |
| German | ausreichen, genügen, genug sein, reichen , zufriedenstellen, befriedigen |
| Portuguese | ser suficiente, atender, satisfazer, bastar, chegar, servir |
| Spanish | bastar, ser suficiente, alcanzar, abastar, pasar piola, bastantear |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does suffice come from?
From Middle English suffisen, from Middle French souffire, from Latin sufficiō (“supply, be adequate”), from sub (“under”) + faciō (“do, make”). Cognate with French suffire.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).