afford

[uh-fawrd, uh-fohrd] /əˈfɔrd, əˈfoʊrd/
verb (used with object)
1.
to be able to do, manage, or bear without serious consequence or adverse effect:
The country can't afford another drought.
2.
to be able to meet the expense of; have or be able to spare the price of:
Can we afford a trip to Europe this year? The city can easily afford to repair the street.
3.
to be able to give or spare:
He can't afford the loss of a day.
4.
to furnish; supply:
The transaction afforded him a good profit.
5.
to be capable of yielding or providing:
The records afford no explanation.
6.
to give or confer upon:
to afford great pleasure to someone.
Origin
before 1050; Middle English aforthen, iforthen, Old English geforthian to further, accomplish, equivalent to ge- y- + forth forth + -ian infinitive suffix
Related forms
unafforded, adjective
Can be confused
accord, afford.
Examples from the web for afford
  • Their increasing wealth means they can afford to make acquisitions.
  • But more buildings means higher utility bills and maintenance costs when colleges cannot afford them.
  • Expending less energy on digestion means you can afford to apply it elsewhere, perhaps to power an expanded brain.
  • Pesticides allow fruits and vegetables to be produced more cheaply, he says, which means more poor people can afford to eat them.
  • And that means that only the biggest and best-funded labs can afford to run them.
  • Critics argue the cold meals are a form of punishment for children whose parents can't afford to pay.
  • We can't afford to send university staff members around the world to recruit.
  • They can afford to because their repayment rates are much higher.
  • With months to go, he couldn't afford to lose heart.
  • We that is everyone can not afford for us to break the planet it's our home.
British Dictionary definitions for afford

afford

/əˈfɔːd/
verb
1.
preceded by can, could, etc. to be able to do or spare something, esp without incurring financial difficulties or without risk of undesirable consequences: we can afford to buy a small house, I can afford to give you one of my chess sets, we can't afford to miss this play
2.
to give, yield, or supply: the meeting afforded much useful information
Derived Forms
affordable, adjective
affordability, noun
Word Origin
Old English geforthian to further, promote, from forthforth; the Old English prefix ge- was later reduced to a-, and the modern spelling (C16) is influenced by words beginning aff-
Word Origin and History for afford
v.

Old English geforðian "to put forth, contribute; further, advance; carry out, accomplish," from ge- completive prefix (see a- (1)) + forðian "to further," from forð "forward, onward" (see forth).

Change of -th- to -d- took place late 16c. (and also transformed burthen and murther into their modern forms). Prefix shift to af- took place 16c. under mistaken belief that it was a Latin word in ad-. Notion of "accomplish" (late Old English) gradually became "manage to buy or maintain; have enough money (to do something)" (1833). Older sense is preserved in afford (one) an opportunity. Related: Afforded; affording.