afford
to be able to do, manage, or bear without serious consequence or adverse effect: The country can't afford another drought.
to be able to meet the expense of; have or be able to spare the price of: Can we afford a trip to Europe this year? The city can easily afford to repair the street.
Origin of afford
1Words that may be confused with afford
- accord, afford
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use afford in a sentence
Private day camps – for those who can afford them – have sprung up to replace in-person learning, because the wheels of San Diego Unified have stopped turning.
The Learning Curve: Even With Schools Closed, State of District ‘Unstoppable’ | Will Huntsberry | November 19, 2020 | Voice of San DiegoOften, they sell their land and relocate to the mainland only to realize that they can’t afford much more than a shack.
Nor am I able to afford a gift, as I have been looking for a job for more than a year.
Miss Manners: Family visit becomes one big project | Judith Martin, Nicholas Martin, Jacobina Martin | November 19, 2020 | Washington PostThey may not be able to afford it or understand that they even have access to it.
Leveraging collective intelligence and AI to benefit society | Jason Sparapani | November 18, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewSo with even a hint that flying might be safe enough within that timescale, many people can afford to take a chance and book now.
Airlines saw an immediate boost in passenger bookings following vaccine announcements | David Meyer | November 17, 2020 | Fortune
The UN methodology affords its team a little more flexibility.
ISIS Fighters Are Killing Faster than Statisticians Can Count | Peter Schwartzstein | December 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe grand jury inquiry affords opportunity to test accuracy of witness accounts.
For a man who has been accused of sexual assault, celebrity affords certain privileges.
Why We're So Hard on Janay Rice and Celebrity Survivors of Abuse | Amy Zimmerman | September 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHigher socioeconomic background affords certain privileges and protections that can make for a more satisfying sexual life.
If fame affords me the type of ability to do the kind of work I'm being offered, who am I to complain about the downsides.
Benedict Cumberbatch’s Revealing Reddit AMA: On Julian Assange’s Letter and Fame | Marlow Stern | October 11, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTThat Lannes would have emerged superior to these trials his previous career affords strong reason to presume.
Napoleon's Marshals | R. P. Dunn-PattisonIt possesses, however, one advantage; it warns the foot passenger, and affords him time to get out of the way.
A Woman's Journey Round the World | Ida PfeifferThe soil is sandy, and affords but little nourishment to the stunted trees with which it is furnished.
His table is well supplied from the choicest his larder affords and he cheerfully welcomes all to its side.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.Whatever reason the transaction affords for binding the former, it supplies for holding the latter bound.
The Ordinance of Covenanting | John Cunningham
British Dictionary definitions for afford
/ (əˈfɔːd) /
(preceded by can, could, etc) to be able to do or spare something, esp without incurring financial difficulties or without risk of undesirable consequences: we can afford to buy a small house; I can afford to give you one of my chess sets; we can't afford to miss this play
to give, yield, or supply: the meeting afforded much useful information
Origin of afford
1Derived forms of afford
- affordable, adjective
- affordability, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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