sufficient
suf·fi·cient/səˈfɪʃənt/determiner, adjective
sufficient is spelled S-U-F-F-I-C-I-E-N-T, 3 syllables: suf·fi·cient. The wrong spelling people search most is sufficent: about 350 Bing searches a month in the United States (September 2025 to August 2026), about 1 in 13 of all searches for the word. Sufficient is a determiner meaning “An adequate quantity of; enough”.
How many letters and syllables are in sufficient?
| Letters | 10: S-U-F-F-I-C-I-E-N-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: suf·fi·cient |
| In writing | 21 times per million words; the 4,153rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | 1; the most searched, sufficent, about 350 Bing searches a month (all of them) |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How do you spell sufficient?
Sufficient is spelled S-U-F-F-I-C-I-E-N-T. One wrong spelling is searched or written often enough to measure; together they are about 1 in 13 of the searches for sufficient in either form.
Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026). Wrong spellings are taken from Wiktionary entries tagged "misspelling" and its obsolete or nonstandard forms, Wikipedia's Lists of common misspellings and the codespell dictionary, then measured. The proofreader's marks show the change that corrects each one.
How common is sufficient?
Sufficient appears 21 times per million words in written English, the 4,153rd 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 sufficient?
- /səˈfɪʃənt/
Sufficient has 3 syllables, split suf·fi·cient in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-sufficient.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sufficient
- suff.
- more sufficient comparative
- most sufficient superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sufficient mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
determiner
- 1
An adequate quantity of; enough.
We have sufficient supplies to last the winter.
- 2
A quantity (of something) that is as large as is needed.
We don't need any more; we already have sufficient.
adjective
- 1
Of a type or kind that suffices, that satisfies requirements or needs.
This is a necessary condition but not a sufficient one.
- 2
Possessing adequate talents or accomplishments; of competent power or ability; qualified; fit.
- 3
archaicCapable of meeting obligations; responsible.
- 4
obsoleteHaving enough money to meet obligations and live comfortably.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate sufficient?
Wiktionary records one abbreviation of sufficient: suff..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sufficient in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | genug , genügend, ausreichend |
| Portuguese | suficiente |
| Spanish | suficiente |
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 sufficient come from?
From Old French sufisanz, soficient, from Latin sufficiēns, present participle of sufficiō.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).