Supplies

How to spell supplies

8 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce supplies

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does supplies mean?

1. nounStocks of goods, materials, or provisions kept for use.
2. verbProvides or makes something available, especially as a regular activity (third-person singular).

Supplies in a sentence

• noun

  The office supplies ran low just before the holidays.

• verb

  The local farm supplies fresh vegetables to several restaurants.

• noun

  The expedition packed enough supplies to last three weeks.

• verb

  A single generator supplies power to the whole building.

Where does supplies come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb supplere, which meant 'to fill up' or 'to complete', formed from sub- meaning 'up from below' and plere meaning 'to fill'. The same plere root sits inside everyday words such as 'complete', 'plenty', and 'replete', all of which carry the idea of filling or fullness. The verb passed into English through Old French soupplier in the fourteenth century, first carrying the sense of making good a lack or meeting a need. From the verb came the noun for the things provided, and the plural 'supplies' for stores of goods became common in military and trade contexts. The spelling trap is the ending: the base 'supply' ends in -y after a consonant, so the y turns to i and -es is added, giving 'supplies' rather than the tempting 'supplys'.

How the word is built

• sup- (from sub-: up from below)
• ply (from Latin plere: to fill)
• -es (plural / third-person verb ending)