Abundant

How to spell abundant

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce abundant

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does abundant mean?

1. adjectiveExisting or available in large quantities; more than enough.

Abundant in a sentence

• The region has an abundant supply of fresh water.

• The garden produced abundant fruit this summer.

Where does abundant come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin abundare, a verb meaning 'to overflow' or 'to flow in waves'. It was built from the prefix ab-, meaning 'off' or 'from', and unda, the Latin word for 'a wave', so the literal picture is of water surging and overflowing its banks. From the idea of overflowing came the sense of having far more than enough, plenty to spare. English took the word through Old French in the late 1300s, when it appeared as a description of generous or plentiful supply. The same unda root still ripples through related words like 'undulate' and 'inundate', which is a handy reminder that the spelling carries a hidden 'wave' in the middle.

How the word is built

• ab- (off, from)
• und (from unda: wave)
• -ant (adjective suffix, meaning 'overflowing')