answer enough for

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase 'answer enough for' is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it when you want to suggest that a particular answer is sufficient or adequate. For example: "I think my answer to that question is answer enough for now."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

This was never answer enough for him.

The New Yorker

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

As most politicians do, they've dodged and obfuscated, but they've answered enough for us to know that they stand for very different things.

The New York Times

Although Brandenn, according to the evaluation form, grew "bored" and refused to answer enough questions for the tester to complete the assessment, he got as far as answering questions at the level of a nine-year-old.

The New Yorker

Of course, there may be some secondary obfuscation — distorted letters and all that — but the content is key, keeping the answer simple enough for a human to answer quickly but still challenge a computer.

TechCrunch

His nonanswer was answer enough.

The New York Times - Sports

Though African Ancestry's test, unlike that of DNAPrint Genomics, doesn't tell its subjects more than the origin of their maternal and paternal sides, that answer was enough for Paige.

Forbes

The problem is is that that is the only answer good enough for a Rush Limbaugh-worshipping, welfare-hating, bible-toting, Climate Change-denying member of the GOP.

Huffington Post

But when two sides with good legal counsel are both willing to bet the house on a case, it's often because there are no obvious "right" answers clear enough for any good judge to see.

Huffington Post

With Pakistan suffering from a food and fuel crisis, and with rent prices soaring in nearby cities like Peshawar, the answer was easy enough for 70percentt of them.

The New York Times

(Read Robert T. Gonzalez's post at Io9, "Why Romney and Obama's Written Science Answers Aren't Enough," for more).

The New York Times

Publishers will want to find some way so need to find an answer that's good enough for Google.

The Guardian

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "answer enough for", ensure the context clearly defines what standard or requirement the answer is meeting. For example, "The explanation was answer enough for the initial query, but further details were needed later."

Common error

Avoid using "answer enough for" when the response is clearly incomplete or inadequate. Instead, acknowledge the limitations and offer further clarification or information.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "answer enough for" functions as a qualifier, indicating that a response or explanation is sufficient or adequate for a specific purpose or requirement. As noted by Ludwig AI, the phrase is grammatically correct. The examples provided in Ludwig show its usage in various contexts to describe responses that meet a certain threshold of acceptability.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

30%

Science

30%

Wiki

10%

Less common in

Formal & Business

10%

Academia

10%

Reference

10%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "answer enough for" is used to express that a response is sufficient or adequate for a given purpose. Ludwig AI confirms its grammatical correctness. While its occurrence is relatively rare, it finds applications across various contexts, particularly in news, science, and general discourse. When employing this phrase, ensure the context makes clear what criteria the response is meeting. Alternatives such as "sufficient answer for" or "adequate response for" can be used to convey similar meanings. The phrase maintains a neutral register, suitable for both professional and informal communication.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

sufficient answer for

Replaces "enough" with "sufficient", emphasizing adequacy but maintaining the core meaning.

adequate response for

Substitutes "answer" with "response" and "enough" with "adequate", slightly shifting the focus to the act of responding.

satisfactory reply for

Uses "reply" instead of "answer" and "satisfactory" for "enough", suggesting the answer meets a certain requirement or expectation.

acceptable solution for

Replaces "answer" with "solution", implying a problem-solving context, and "enough" with "acceptable", indicating that the solution meets the minimum requirements.

sufficiently answered for

Rephrases to emphasize the act of answering to a sufficient degree, changing the grammatical structure.

an adequate explanation for

Shifts the noun from 'answer' to 'explanation', focusing on clarifying information that is adequate.

a response that suffices for

Restructures to highlight that the response is fulfilling what is needed or required.

a good enough response for

Adds "good" to describe the quality of the response that's just meeting the requirement.

an answer that's just sufficient for

Emphasizes that the answer barely meets the needed requirements by using "just sufficient".

a passible response for

Suggests the response is merely adequate or acceptable by using "passible".

FAQs

How can I use "answer enough for" in a sentence?

You can use "answer enough for" to indicate that a response is sufficient or adequate for a specific purpose. For example, "His brief explanation was "answer enough for" the initial inquiry."

What are some alternatives to "answer enough for"?

Alternatives to "answer enough for" include "sufficient answer for", "adequate response for", or "satisfactory reply for", depending on the nuance you want to convey.

Is it better to say "good enough answer" or "answer enough for"?

The choice depends on the context. "Good enough answer" describes the quality of the answer, while "answer enough for" specifies that the answer is sufficient for a particular purpose or requirement.

What does it mean when someone says the "answer wasn't good enough"?

It means the response did not meet their expectations or requirements. This suggests a need for more information or a different type of explanation, and is the contrary to ""answer enough for"".