Suited

How to spell suited

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce suited

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does suited mean?

1. verbWas appropriate, convenient, or satisfactory for someone or something.
2. adjectiveRight or appropriate for a particular person, purpose, or situation.

Suited in a sentence

• verb

  The early start time suited everyone on the team.

• adjective

  Her patient temperament made her well suited to teaching.

• verb

  The quiet countryside suited her far better than the city.

• adjective

  This rugged laptop is ideally suited to outdoor work.

Where does suited come from?

Language of origin: French

This is the inflected form of the verb and noun 'suit', which English took from the Old French 'sieute' or 'suite', meaning 'a following', 'a sequence', or 'a set of things that go together'. That French word traces back to the Latin 'sequi', meaning 'to follow', the same root that gives us 'sequence', 'consequence', and 'pursue'. The idea of a set of matching things led naturally to the clothing sense (a coat and trousers that follow each other) and to the card sense (the four matching sets in a pack). The verb developed the meaning 'to fit or be appropriate', since something that suits you follows or matches your needs. The form 'suited' carries both the past-tense idea of having fitted and the adjectival idea of being well matched, and the single 't' before the '-ed' is the small spelling point worth noticing.

How the word is built

• suit (from Old French sieute, a following or set)
• -ed (past tense / adjectival suffix)