plenty

Meanings

1. 1noununcountable

   A large or fully sufficient amount, more than anyone needs.

   Grammar: Usually followed by of: plenty of time, plenty of chairs.

   Patterns

   • plenty of something
   • there is plenty

   We have plenty of food, so please take more.

   Don't rush; there is plenty of time before the train leaves.

   He got plenty of advice, but none of it helped.

2. 2noununcountableformal

   A situation of wealth and abundance in which people have all they need.

   Grammar: Often appears in the phrase in plenty, and sounds a little literary.

   Patterns

   • in plenty
   • a time of plenty

   After the war came years of plenty, when shops were full again.

   They lived in plenty, never worrying about the next meal.

3. 3adverbnot comparableinformalAmerican

   Very, or more than enough, said casually before an adjective or adverb.

   Grammar: Informal and American: the soup is plenty hot, meaning quite hot enough.

   Patterns

   • plenty good enough

   The room is plenty big for six people.

   That is plenty fast for a first-time driver.

Common combinations

plenty of time

You have plenty of time to finish the exam.

plenty more

Take another slice; there is plenty more.

more than plenty

Thanks, that is more than plenty for me.

in plenty

Fish were found in plenty in the lake.

a time of plenty

Harvest festivals celebrate a time of plenty.

plenty to

There is plenty to see in this town.

Synonyms and how they differ

lots

Lots is more casual and almost always used in speech, whereas plenty implies enough and often a little more.

abundance

Abundance is more formal and describes a rich, overflowing supply, while plenty is everyday and practical.

enough

Enough only says that a need is met, but plenty says there is clearly more than needed.

a great deal

A great deal is more formal and measures size of amount, with no sense of having enough.

Opposites

Word family

plentiful adjective

available in large amounts

plenteous adjective

literary word for abundant

plentifully adverb

in large amounts

plenitude noun

formal word for fullness or abundance

Commonly confused: plenty or plentiful?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “plenty”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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