different between satisfactory vs ample

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French satisfactoire, from Late Latin satisfact?rius, from Latin satisfactus, past participle of satisfaci?.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sæt?s?fækt(?)?i/
• Rhymes: -ækt??i

Adjective

satisfactory (comparative more satisfactory, superlative most satisfactory)

1. Done to satisfaction; adequate or sufficient.

   The satisfactory results of the survey led to his promotion.
2. Causing satisfaction; agreeable or pleasant; satisfying.
3. (theology) Making atonement for a sin; expiatory.

Usage notes

Although structurally similar (both being derived from satisfy and describing that which produces satisfaction), satisfactory (def. 1) and satisfying differ in connotation. Satisfactory connotes "adequate, conforming to standards," while satisfying connotes "pleasing, or sufficient to remove any feeling of lack." An answer to a question or the outcome of a situation, for example, could be satisfactory without being satisfying, if it met the requirements but left one wanting more.

Derived terms

• satisfactorily (adv)
• unsatisfactory (adj)

Related terms

• satisfaction (n)
• satisfied (adj)

Translations

English

Etymology

From late Middle English ample, from Middle French ample, from Latin amplus (“large”), probably for ambiplus (“full on both sides”), the last syllable akin to Latin plenus (“full”).

Pronunciation

• (General American, Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?æm.p?l/
• Rhymes: -æmp?l

Adjective

ample (comparative ampler, superlative amplest)

1. Large; great in size, extent, capacity, or bulk; for example spacious, roomy or widely extended.

2. Fully sufficient; abundant; plenty

3. Not contracted or brief; not concise; extended; diffusive

Synonyms

• full, spacious, extensive, wide, capacious, abundant, plentiful, plenteous, copious, bountiful; rich, liberal, munificent
• See also Thesaurus:ample
• (large): See also Thesaurus:large
• (fully sufficient): See also Thesaurus:abundant

Related terms

Translations

References

• ample in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• ample in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.

Anagrams

• Maple, Palme, maple, pelma

Catalan

Etymology

From Latin amplus.

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /?am.pl?/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /?am.ple/

Adjective

ample (feminine ampla, masculine and feminine plural amples)

1. wide
2. ample, plentiful

Derived terms

• amplada
• amplament
• amplària

Related terms

• ampliar

Further reading

• “ample” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “ample” in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana.
• “ample” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “ample” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

French

Etymology

From Latin amplus (“large”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /??pl/

Adjective

ample (plural amples)

1. plentiful, abundant, copious, profuse, ample
2. (of clothes) loose, baggy

Further reading

• “ample” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Latin

Etymology 1

Adverb

ampl? (comparative amplius, superlative amplissim?)

1. amply, largely

Etymology 2

Adjective

ample

1. vocative masculine singular of amplus

References

• ample in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• ample in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers

Middle English

Alternative forms

• emple

Etymology

Borrowed from Middle French ample, from Old French ample, from Latin amplus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?amp?l/, /??mp?l/

Adjective

ample

1. (Late Middle English) ample, copious, profuse

Related terms

• amplifiyen

Descendants

• English: ample
• Scots: ample

References

• “ample, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-04.