Affluent

How to spell affluent

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce affluent

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does affluent mean?

1. adjectiveHaving a great deal of money; wealthy and prosperous.

Affluent in a sentence

• The new development was aimed at affluent buyers who wanted large gardens.

• She grew up in an affluent suburb where most families owned two cars.

Where does affluent come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin affluentem, the present participle of affluere, which literally meant 'to flow toward' or 'to flow in abundance'. It was built from ad- meaning 'to' or 'toward' (its 'd' assimilating into the following 'f' to give the doubled 'ff') and fluere meaning 'to flow', the same root that gives us 'fluent', 'fluid', 'influence' and 'confluence'. The image is of wealth flowing in so freely that it overflows, which is exactly how the word came to mean rich and prosperous. English borrowed it through Old French in the 1400s, first in the literal sense of flowing or abundant and soon in the financial sense of well supplied with money. Remembering that hidden 'flow' helps with the spelling: the double 'f' marks the ad- prefix meeting fluere, and the middle keeps the 'flu' of 'fluid'.

How the word is built

• af- (assimilated form of ad-, toward)
• flu (from Latin fluere, to flow)
• -ent (adjective/noun suffix)