afford

English

Alternative forms

• afoord, affoord, affoard, affowrd (all obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English afforthen, aforthen, avorthien, from earlier iforthen, iforthien, ȝeforthien, from Old English forþian, ġeforþian (“to further, accomplish, afford”), from Proto-Germanic *furþōną, from Proto-Germanic *furþa (“forth, forward”), equivalent to a- +‎ forth. Cognate with Old Norse forða (“to forward oneself, save oneself, escape danger”), Icelandic forða (“to save, rescue”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: ə-fōrdʹ, IPA^(key): /əˈfoɹd/, /əˈfɔɹd/
• IPA^(key): /əˈfɔːd/
• IPA^(key): /əˈfo(ː)ɹd/
• IPA^(key): /əˈfoəd/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)d

Verb

afford (third-person singular simple present affords, present participle affording, simple past and past participle afforded)

1. To incur, stand, or bear without serious detriment, as an act which might under other circumstances be injurious;—with an auxiliary, as can, could, might, etc.; to be able or rich enough.

   I think we can afford the extra hour it will take.  We can only afford to buy a small car at the moment.

   • Template:RQ:EHough PrqsPrc

     “[…] We are engaged in a great work, a treatise on our river fortifications, perhaps? But since when did army officers afford the luxury of amanuenses in this simple republic? […]”

2. To offer, provide, or supply, as in selling, granting, expending, with profit, or without loss or too great injury.

   A affords his goods cheaper than B.

3. To give forth; to supply, yield, or produce as the natural result, fruit, or issue.

   Grapes afford wine.  Olives afford oil.  The earth affords fruit.  The sea affords an abundant supply of fish.

4. To give, grant, or confer, with a remoter reference to its being the natural result; to provide; to furnish.

   A good life affords consolation in old age.

   • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 4, in The Celebrity:

     One morning I had been driven to the precarious refuge afforded by the steps of the inn, after rejecting offers from the Celebrity to join him in a variety of amusements. But even here I was not free from interruption, for he was seated on a horse-block below me, playing with a fox terrier.

   • 2012 April 29, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Treehouse of Horror III” (season 4, episode 5; originally aired 10/29/1992)”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name):

     Writing a “Treehouse of Horror” segment has to be both exhilarating and daunting. It’s exhilarating because it affords writers all the freedom in the world.

Usage notes

• Sense 1. This is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive. See Appendix:English catenative verbs

Derived terms

• affordable
• affordance
• offer affordances

Translations

to incur, stand, or bear

• Arabic: أَعْطَى (ʔaʕṭā)
• Bulgarian: позволявам си (pozvoljavam si), имам средства да купя (imam sredstva da kupja)
• Catalan: permetre's (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 支付得起 (zh) (zhīfùdeqǐ), 付得起 (fùdeqǐ)

• Czech: dovolovat si impf, dovolit si (cs) pf
• Danish: ha råd til
• Finnish: olla varaa
• French: se permettre (fr)
• German: sich leisten (de), imstande sein
• Hungarian: módjában áll, megengedheti magának
• Interlingue: ,
• Italian: permettersi
• Japanese: (買う, 持つ) 余裕がある (ja) (よゆうがある, yoyū ga aru), (買う, 持つ) ゆとりがある (ja) (yutori ga aru)
• Latvian: atļauties
• Norwegian: tåle (no), ha råd til (no)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Polish: pozwalać sobie (pl) impf, pozwolić sobie (pl) pf
• Portuguese: conseguir pagar, lidar (pt)
• Russian: позволя́ть себе́ (ru) impf (pozvoljátʹ sebé), позво́лить себе́ (ru) pf (pozvólitʹ sebé), быть в состоя́нии (ru) (bytʹ v sostojánii)
• Scots: affuird
• Serbo-Croatian: приуштити, priùštiti (sh)
• Slovak: dovoľovať si impf, dovoliť si pf; dopriavať si impf, dopriať si pf
• Slovene: si privoščiti
• Sorbian:

  Upper Sorbian: sej dowolować impf, sej dowolić pf; sej popřewać impf, sej popřeć pf

• Spanish: costear (es), permitirse (es)
• Swedish: ha råd (sv)
• Ukrainian: дозволя́ти собі́ impf (dozvoljáty sobí), бу́ти спромо́жним (búty spromóžnym)
• Welsh: fforddio (cy)

to offer, provide, or supply

• Arabic: أَعْطَى (ʔaʕṭā)
• Bulgarian: давам (bg) (davam), доставям (bg) (dostavjam), принасям (полза) (bg) (prinasjam (polza))
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 提供 (zh) (tígōng)

• Danish: skaffe, tilbyde (da)
• Finnish: tarjota (fi)
• French: offrir (fr)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: gewähren (de)
• Japanese: 供給する (ja) (ていきょうする, teikyū suru), 与える (ja) (あたえる, ataeru)
• Norwegian: skaffe (no)
• Portuguese: prover (pt), agraciar (pt)
• Russian: предоставля́ть (ru) impf (predostavljátʹ), предоста́вить (ru) pf (predostávitʹ)
• Ukrainian: надава́ти (uk) impf (nadaváty), нада́ти pf (nadáty)

to give forth; to produce as a natural result

• Finnish: tarjota (fi), tuottaa (fi), antaa (fi), suoda (fi)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

to provide; furnish

• Danish: give (da), give (da), skænke
• Finnish: tarjota (fi), suoda (fi)
• Portuguese: fornecer (pt), fornecer (pt)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Swedish: ge (sv), skänka (sv), bereda (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Norman: ^{(please verify)} affaûrder (Jersey)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}