I. e ‧ nough 1 S1 W1 /ɪˈnʌf/ BrE AmE adverb [always after a verb, adjective, or adverb]
1 . to the degree that is necessary or wanted:
Are the carrots cooked enough?
He just hadn’t thought enough about the possible consequences.
You can go to school when you’re old enough.
enough for
Is the water warm enough for you?
enough to do something
Will Evans be fit enough to play?
The rooms are all large enough to take a third bed.
Surely no one would be foolish enough to lend him the money?
You’re late. It’s just not good enough (=not satisfactory or acceptable) .
2 . fairly but not very:
I was happy enough in Bordeaux, but I missed my family.
He’s a nice enough young man.
3 . bad/difficult/hard etc enough used to say that a situation is already bad and you do not want it to get any worse:
Life’s difficult enough without you interfering all the time.
4 . lucky/unfortunate etc enough to be/do something used to say that someone is lucky or unlucky that something happens to them:
They were unlucky enough to be caught in the storm.
5 . would you be good/kind enough to do something? spoken used to ask someone politely to do something for you:
Would you be good enough to hold the door open?
6 . strangely/oddly/curiously etc enough used to say that a fact or something that happens is strange or surprising:
Strangely enough, I didn’t feel at all nervous when I faced the audience.
7 . near enough British English spoken used when you are guessing a number, amount, time etc because you cannot be exact:
The full cost comes to £3,000, near enough.
⇨ fair enough at ↑ fair 1 (14), ⇨ sure enough at ↑ sure 2 (1)
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GRAMMAR
Enough comes after adjectives and adverbs, never before them:
▪
The printer is light enough (NOT enough light) to move easily.
▪
Their business wasn’t growing fast enough.
II. enough 2 S1 W2 BrE AmE determiner , pronoun
1 . as many or as much as is needed or wanted:
Have I given you enough money?
Not enough is known about what happened.
enough for
There aren’t enough chairs for everyone.
enough to do/eat etc
Erica was worried that the children weren’t getting enough to eat.
enough (something) to do something
The police didn’t have enough evidence to convict him.
He didn’t even earn enough to pay the rent.
You’ve had more than enough time to make all the preparations.
enough to go round (=enough of something for everyone to have some)
Do you think we’ve got enough pizza to go round?
not nearly/nowhere near enough informal (=much less than you need)
We only had $500, and that was nowhere near enough to buy a new camcorder.
time/reason/trouble etc enough old-fashioned :
Come on – there’ll be time enough to chat later.
2 . used to say that a situation is already bad and you do not want it to get any worse:
She has enough problems without you two getting into fights.
I don’t want to bother him – he has enough to worry about.
3 . have had enough (of something) spoken used to say you are tired or angry about a situation and want it to stop:
When I got home I just sat down and cried. I’d had enough.
I’ve just about had enough of your stupid remarks.
4 . enough is enough spoken used to say that something that is happening should stop:
There comes a point when you say enough is enough.
5 . that’s (quite) enough ( also enough already American English ) spoken used to tell someone to stop doing something:
Now, you two, that’s quite enough. Sit down and be quiet.
6 . enough said spoken used to tell someone that they do not need to say any more because you understand the point they are making:
‘He’s the sort of man who wears a lot of jewellery.’ ‘Enough said.’
7 . can’t get enough of something/somebody informal to enjoy something so much that you want more and more of it:
Her millions of fans can’t get enough of her.
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GRAMMAR
Enough comes before uncountable and plural nouns, not singular nouns:
▪
We haven’t got enough time.
▪
There aren’t enough books (NOT enough book).
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THESAURUS
▪ enough /ɪˈnʌf/ as much or as many as necessary, or as you want:
My family never had enough money for holidays abroad.
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Have you had enough to eat?
▪ sufficient formal enough for a particular purpose:
The police did not have sufficient evidence to justify a charge.
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The accuracy of the older technique was sufficient for our needs.
▪ adequate formal enough in quantity or good enough in quality for a particular purpose:
All staff must be given adequate training in health and safety.
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The heating system was barely adequate.
▪ ample more than enough for what is needed:
Local residents will be given ample opportunity to express their views.
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People used to think that 1 GB of memory was ample for the average personal computer.
▪ plenty an amount that is enough or more than enough:
Allow yourself plenty of time to get to the airport.
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Your daughter won’t need much cash at camp ($20-$25 will be plenty).
▪ something will do/something should do spoken used to say that a particular number or amount will be enough for what you need:
‘How many envelopes do you want?’ ‘Ten should do.’