supply

1.verbtransitiveB2

Definition

to give people the things they need or want, especially in regular or large amounts — for example, a company that supplies computers to schools, or a farmer who supplies vegetables to local shops.

Example

Fresh bread is supplied to local cafés by the bakery every morning.

passive: be supplied + to + place

Hugo supplied the kitchen with fresh vegetables from his garden.

supply + someone + with + something

Common collocations

supply someone with
supply something to
supply goods
supply food
supply water
supply equipment
supply information

Synonyms

provide
more general; 'supply' often suggests regular or large-scale provision
furnish
more formal; common in written contracts and official contexts
deliver
focuses on the act of bringing goods to a specific place

Antonyms

withhold
to refuse to give something that is needed or wanted
deprive
to take away something from someone, leaving them without it

Grammar Patterns

supply + something + to + someone/somewhere

supply + someone + with + something

Usage Note

The most common structure is supply + someone + with + something (supplied us with food) or supply + something + to + someone/somewhere (supplies water to the village). Frequently used in the passive voice.

Common Mistakes

The river offers water to the town.

The river supplies water to the town.

'supply' means providing regularly or in quantity, while 'offer' means giving someone a choice to take or refuse.

She supplied me some food.

She supplied me with some food.

With 'someone' as the direct object, you need 'with' before the thing supplied.

1.nounB2

Definition

a certain amount of a thing that people can get and use whenever they need it — for example, a supply of drinking water, a supply of medicine, or a limited supply of tickets.

Example

The village has a good supply of clean drinking water from the mountain spring.

a supply of + noun phrase

Putri bought a large supply of rice before the rainy season began.

Common collocations

supply of
fresh supply
steady supply
limited supply
endless supply
adequate supply
year's supply

Synonyms

stock
emphasises stored goods ready for use, especially in a shop or warehouse
reserve
suggests something kept back for future or emergency use
store
a supply kept for later use, often in a specific place

Grammar Patterns

a supply of something

the supply of something

adjective + supply of

Usage Note

Can be both countable (a supply, supplies in the sense of quantities) and uncountable (enough supply). Sense 2 (PROVISIONS) is always plural when referring to multiple items.

Common Mistakes

The shop has many supply of food.

The shop has a large supply of food.

'supply' as a countable noun takes 'a' or 'an', not 'many'.

We need supply of water.

We need a supply of water.' or 'We need supplies of water.

A determiner or plural form is required.

2.nounB1

Definition

items that people must have to live or to do something — these include food, equipment, and medicine; for example, medical supplies for a hospital, or food supplies for a camping trip.

Example

The hospital needs more medical supplies to treat all the patients in the emergency room.

collocation: medical supplies

The hikers carried enough food supplies for three days in the mountains.

collocation: food supplies

Common collocations

medical supplies
food supplies
office supplies
emergency supplies
military supplies
camping supplies
art supplies

Synonyms

provisions
specifically food and drink supplies, often for a journey
stores
supplies kept in a central location for later use
equipment
focuses on tools and gear rather than consumable goods

Grammar Patterns

supplies of something

adjective + supplies

Usage Note

Almost always used in the plural form (supplies). Use sense 1 (AMOUNT AVAILABLE) when referring to a quantity of one type of thing; use this sense for a set of different necessary items.

Common Mistakes

We ran out of supply.

We ran out of supplies.

When referring to general provisions, use the plural form 'supplies'.

3.nounB2

Definition

the total amount of a product or service that is available for people to buy, considered in relation to how much people want it — the basic economic idea that prices go up when supply is low and demand is high, and fall when the opposite is true.

Example

The price of fruit goes up when the supply is low after a bad harvest.

Housing supply cannot keep up with the number of families moving to the city.

collocation: housing supply

Common collocations

supply and demand
housing supply
oil supply
food supply
energy supply
global supply
increase the supply of
reduce the supply of

Synonyms

stock
the amount of goods a business has available to sell at a given time
availability
focuses on whether something can be obtained, not on quantity

Antonyms

demand
the amount of a product or service that people want to buy

Grammar Patterns

supply and demand

the supply of + noun

adjective + supply

Usage Note

Uncountable in this sense. Often paired with 'demand' in discussions of market economics. Common in news reports about prices, housing, energy, and commodities.

Common Mistakes

The supply of oil are limited.

The supply of oil is limited.

'supply' in the economic sense is uncountable and takes a singular verb.

4.nounB2

Definition

the system or process that makes something such as water, electricity, gas, or power available to homes, businesses, or hospitals — for example, the water supply that comes through pipes, or the electricity supply that runs through wires.

Example

The electricity supply to the area was cut for six hours after the storm.

the [noun] supply — electricity supply

The city's water supply comes from a large lake about fifty kilometres to the north.

Common collocations

power supply
water supply
electricity supply
gas supply
blood supply
cut the supply
restore the supply
turn off the supply

Synonyms

provision
more formal; 'provision of electricity' focuses on the act of making it available
delivery
focuses on the physical transfer of the resource to the end user

Grammar Patterns

the + noun + supply

supply of + noun

Usage Note

Typically preceded by a noun identifying the resource (power supply, water supply, gas supply, blood supply). Can be used with or without an article depending on countability.

5.nounB2

Definition

used with the expression 'in short supply' to mean that not enough of something can be found or obtained — for example, when clean water is hard to find after a drought, or when hotel rooms are unavailable during a festival.

Example

Clean drinking water was in short supply after months of no rain in the region.

fixed phrase: in short supply

During the music festival, hotel rooms in the town were in very short supply.

Common collocations

in short supply
be in short supply

Synonyms

scarce
an adjective meaning the same thing; 'clean water is scarce' = 'clean water is in short supply'
limited
softer than 'in short supply'; suggests there is some but not enough

Antonyms

plentiful
available in large amounts; the opposite of scarce or in short supply
abundant
more than enough; far more available than needed

Grammar Patterns

in short supply

be + in short supply

Usage Note

This sense is almost always used within the fixed phrase 'in short supply', which functions as a predicate adjective (subject + be + in short supply). The phrase cannot normally be broken apart or reordered.

Common Mistakes

Fresh vegetables are short in supply.

Fresh vegetables are in short supply.

The word order is fixed as 'in short supply'.

There is a short supply of water.

Water is in short supply.

The phrase 'a short supply' is not standard; use 'in short supply' or 'a shortage of'.

Idioms

in short supply

idiom

Not enough of something is available for people who need or want it.

Fresh vegetables are in short supply after the long drought.

Why is skilled labor in short supply in this region?

Word family

supplier
nounB2
supplies
nounB1
supplied
adjectiveB2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

These four words all involve giving something to someone, but they differ in emphasis. 'Supply' suggests providing something regularly or in quantity — a company supplies water to a town, or a supplier provides parts to a factory. 'Provide' is the most general and neutral word: you can provide information, food, or help, whether once or regularly. 'Furnish' is more formal and typically used in writing or contracts — 'the landlord furnished the apartment with new furniture' or 'the report furnished the committee with the necessary data.' 'Deliver' focuses on the physical act of bringing goods to a specific place: a courier delivers a package to your door, but a bakery supplies bread to shops every day — the supply relationship includes the arrangement, not just the delivery trip. In everyday conversation, 'provide' and 'supply' are the most common choices, with 'supply' leaning toward commercial and regular contexts.

provide ↗supply ↗furnish ↗deliver ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

supply chain
supply line
supply route
supply store
supply teacher

Adverbs

adequately supplied
well supplied
directly supplied
freshly supplied
regularly supplied

Phrases

supply and demand
in short supply

Prepositions

supply of
supply for
supply to

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

The word 'supply' comes from Latin 'supplere', meaning 'to fill up, complete' — formed from 'sub-' (up from under) and 'plere' (to fill, related to 'plenus' meaning full). It passed into Old French as 'soupplier' and then into Middle English, where it originally meant 'to fill a deficiency or make up for a lack.' The economic sense (supply and demand) developed in the 18th century, while the verb sense 'to provide for someone's needs' has been in use since the 1300s.

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supply

supply — verb

1. to give people the things they need or want, especially in regular or large amou

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

supply — noun

1. a certain amount of a thing that people can get and use whenever they need it —

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

2. items that people must have to live or to do something — these include food, equ

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

3. the total amount of a product or service that is available for people to buy, co

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

4. the system or process that makes something such as water, electricity, gas, or p

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

5. used with the expression 'in short supply' to mean that not enough of something

Grammar Patterns

Usage Note

Common Mistakes

in short supply

Word family

Synonym discussion

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

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