satisfy

English

Etymology

From Middle English satisfyen, satisfien, from Old French satisfiier, satisfier (also Old French satisfaire), from Latin satisfacere, present active infinitive of satisfaciō, from satis (“enough, sufficient”) + faciō (“I make, I do”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈsætɪsfaɪ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Hyphenation: sat‧is‧fy

Verb

satisfy (third-person singular simple present satisfies, present participle satisfying, simple past and past participle satisfied)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To be enough (for)

   That brief explanation will never satisfy.

   1. (transitive) To meet the needs of, to fulfill the wishes or requirements of (someone).

      The final rehearsal of the day seemed to satisfy the director.

   2. (transitive) To provide what is wanted or required for (something).

      Even three giant helpings of turkey and ham didn't satisfy her appetite.

   • 1667, John Milton, “Book IX”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

     Death shall […] with us two / Be forced to satisfy his ravenous maw.

   • 1980 March 7, Billy Joel, “You May Be Right”, in Glass Houses‎^[1]:

     Now think of all the years you tried to
     Find someone to satisfy you
     I might be as crazy as you say
     If I'm crazy then it's true
     That it's all because of you
     And you wouldn't want me any other way

2. (finance, transitive) To pay to the extent of what is claimed or due.

   to satisfy a creditor

3. (law, transitive) To answer or discharge (a claim, debt, legal demand, etc.); to give compensation for.

   to satisfy a claim or an execution

4. (mathematics, logic, transitive) To cause (a sentence) to be true when the sentence is interpreted in one's universe.

   The complex numbers satisfy $\exists x:x^{2}+1=0$.

5. (dated, literary, transitive) To convince by ascertaining; to free from doubt.
   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 19, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:

     I was resolved to satisfy myself whether this ragged Elijah was really dogging us or not, and with that intent crossed the way with Queequeg, and on that side of it retraced our steps.

   • 1856, “Treaty signed April 18, 1855; ratified April 5, 1856”, in Treaty of friendship and commerce between Great Britain and Siam, Bangkok: J. H. Chandler, page 9:

     The Siamese officer and the Consul having satisfied themselves of the honest intentions of the applicant, will assist him...

Antonyms

• (antonym(s) of “meet needs, fulfill”): disappoint
• dissatisfy
• satisfy oneself

Related terms

• satisfaction
• satisfactory
• satisfice
• satiate
• satiation
• satiety

Translations

to be enough (for)

• Arabic: رَضَّى (raḍḍā)
• Armenian: բավարարել (hy) (bavararel)
• Asturian: satisfacer
• Belarusian: задавальня́ць impf (zadavalʹnjácʹ), задаво́ліць pf (zadavólicʹ)
• Bulgarian: удовлетворя́вам (bg) impf (udovletvorjávam), удовлетворя́ pf (udovletvorjá), задоволя́вам (bg) impf (zadovoljávam), задоволя́ pf (zadovoljá)
• Catalan: satisfer (ca)
• Cebuano: tagbaw
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 滿足／满足 (zh) (mǎnzú)

• Czech: uspokojovat impf, uspokojit (cs) pf, vyhovovat (cs) impf, vyhovět pf
• Danish: tilfredsstille (da)
• Dutch: voldoen (nl), voldoende zijn, bevredigen (nl)
• Esperanto: kontentigi
• Finnish: tyydyttää (fi), olla tyytyväinen
• French: satisfaire (fr)
• Galician: satisfacer (gl)
• Georgian: დაკმაყოფილება (daḳmaq̇opileba)
• German: befriedigen (de), zufriedenstellen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌲𐌰𐍃𐍉𐌸𐌾𐌰𐌽 (gasōþjan), 𐍆𐌿𐌻𐌻𐌰𐍆𐌰𐌷𐌾𐌰𐌽 (fullafahjan)
• Greek: ικανοποιώ (el) (ikanopoió)

  Ancient: κορέννυμι (korénnumi)

• Hungarian: kielégít (hu)
• Icelandic: gera ánægðan (someone), fullnægja (something)
• Ido: satisfacar (io)
• Irish: sásaigh

  Old Irish: sásaid

• Italian: soddisfare (it), accontentare (it), saziare (it)
• Japanese: 満たす (ja) (みたす, mitasu)
• Kazakh: қанағаттандыру (qanağattandyru)
• Korean: 만족시키다 (manjoksikida)
• Latin: satiō, sufficio (la), satisfacio
• Lithuanian: tenkinti, patenkinti
• Macedonian: задоволува impf (zadovoluva), задоволи pf (zadovoli)
• Malagasy: mahavoky, mamoky (mg)
• Maori: whakaupa, whakatūtataki, whakanā (thirst, appetite), whakahei (an obligation), whakatūtataki
• Norwegian: tilfredsstille (no)
• Old English: cweman, gesedan, sadian, weldon, fyllan, afyllan
• Persian: قانع کردن (qâne' kardan)
• Polish: zadowalać (pl) impf, zadowolić (pl) pf, zaspokajać (pl) impf, zaspokoić (pl) pf, satysfakcjonować (pl) impf, usatysfakcjonować pf
• Portuguese: satisfazer (pt)
• Quechua: saksay, amikuy
• Romanian: satisface (ro), mulțumi (ro), îndeplini (ro)
• Russian: удовлетворя́ть (ru) impf (udovletvorjátʹ), удовлетвори́ть (ru) pf (udovletvorítʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: sàsaich, riaraich
• Slovak: uspokojovať impf, uspokojiť pf
• Slovene: zadovoljeváti impf, zadovoljíti pf
• Spanish: satisfacer (es)
• Swedish: tillfredsställa (sv)
• Telugu: తీర్చు (te) (tīrcu)
• Thai: ทำให้พอใจ
• Turkish: tatmin etmek (tr), yetmek (tr), doyurmak (tr)
• Ukrainian: задовольня́ти impf (zadovolʹnjáty), задовольни́ти (uk) pf (zadovolʹnýty)
• Vietnamese: thỏa mãn (vi), thoả mãn (vi) (妥滿)

to pay to the extent of what is claimed or due

• Bulgarian: изплащам (bg) (izplaštam)
• Finnish: maksaa velkansa

Further reading

• “satisfy”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “satisfy”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “satisfy”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.