Afford
verb ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
- 1 To incur, stand, or bear without serious detriment, as an act which might under other circumstances be injurious; (usually after an expression of ability, as could, able, difficult) to be able or rich enough; to spare.
"I think we can afford the extra hour it will take. We can only afford to buy a small car at the moment."
- 2 be able to spare or give up wordnet
- 3 To offer, provide, or supply, as in selling, granting or expending, with profit, or without too great a loss. obsolete
"Alfred affords his goods cheaper than Bantock."
- 4 be the cause or source of wordnet
- 5 To give forth; to supply, yield, or produce as the natural result, fruit, or issue. rare
"Grapes afford wine. Olives afford oil. The earth affords fruit. The sea affords an abundant supply of fish."
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- 6 have the financial means to do something or buy something wordnet
- 7 To give, grant, or confer, with a remoter reference to its being the natural result; to provide; to furnish.
"A good life affords consolation in old age."
Antonyms
All antonymsExample
More examples"You can't afford to neglect your health."
Etymology
From Middle English afforthen, aforthen, avorthien, from earlier iforthen, iforthien, ȝeforthien, from Old English forþian, ġeforþian (“to further, accomplish, afford”), from Proto-Germanic *furþōną, from Proto-Germanic *furþą (“forth, forward”), equivalent to a- + forth. Cognate with Old Norse forða (“to forward oneself, save oneself, escape danger”), Icelandic forða (“to save, rescue”).
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.