enough is enough - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (2024)

English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Compare Dutch genoeg is genoeg, German genug ist genug, Yiddish גענוג איז גענוג (genug iz genug, “enough is enough”).

Pronunciation[edit]

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɪˌnʌf‿ɪz ɪˈnʌf/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /iˌnʌf‿ɪz iˈnʌf/, /ə-/
• Rhymes: -ʌf

Phrase[edit]

enough is enough

1. One should be satisfied; nothing additional is required.

   Synonym: enough is as good as a feast

   • 1546, John Heywood, chapter XI, in Julian Sharman, editor, The Proverbs of John Heywood.[…], London: George Bell and Sons,[…], published 1874, →OCLC, part II, page 173:

     Here is enough, I am satisfied, (sayd he). / Since enough is enough, (sayd I), here may we / With that one word take end good, as may be geast: / For folke say, enough is as good as a feast.

     The spelling has been modernized.

   • 1834, Robert Southey, “Chapter XX. P.I. How to Make Gold.”, in The Doctor, &c., volume I, London: Longman, Rees, Orme, Brown, Green, and Longman, →OCLC, page 199:

     Learning is better than house or land. As for money, enough is enough; no man can enjoy more; and the less he can be contented with the wiser and better he is likely to be.

     See Also

     "Enough' vs. "a lot of" in the English GrammarWhat is the opposite of enough?TOO & ENOUGH | English Grammar Lesson - mmmEnglishsufficient - Simple English Wiktionary

   • 1920, Thornton W[aldo] Burgess, “A Dinner for Two”, in Old Granny Fox, New York, N.Y.: Grosset & Dunlap, →OCLC, page 173:

     "Aren't you going to get any more while we have the chance?" grumbled Reddy. "Enough is enough," retorted Granny.

   • 1987 November 11, “Reagan on dollar fall: ‘Enough is enough’”, in Southeast Missourian, volume 83, number 342, Cape Girardeau, Mo.: Rust Communications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 1, column 3:

     Other administration officials have hinted the dollar may have to fall further, but President [Ronald] Reagan says enough is enough. "We're not doing anything to bring it down," Reagan said Tuesday in comments that sparked a slight dollar rally. "I don't look for a further decline, don't want a further decline from where it is right now."

2. Especially as an expression of exasperation: the limit of patience or tolerance has been reached.

   Synonym: enough is too much

   • 1961 January 4, Lee Mortimer, “Why not sever all Cuban ties?”, in Glen O. Long, editor, Spartanburg Herald-Journal, volume 71, number 2, Spartanburg, S.C.: Phil Buchheit, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 4, column 2:

     With every new indignity served upon the United States by the fanatical Fidel Castro comes an immediate, and lasting, impulse to declare that enough is enough.

   • 1994 January 22, Richard L. Berke, “G.O.P. sees crime as a major issue”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-09-11, section 1, page 9:

     “I want a crime bill that grabs violent criminals by the throat,” Mr. [Phil] Gramm said. […] “I am for rehabilitation. But there reaches a point where you've got to say, ‘Enough is enough.’”

     See Also

     What It Means to Be Enough

   • 2013 September 25, Desmond Tutu, “Every Child Deserves a Quality Education”, in Forbes‎^[2], New York, N.Y.: Forbes, Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-09-11:

     What message are we sending our children? That they are not worthy of a basic & simple infrastructure. That they cannot be allowed the freedom to dream of a better way of learning, and a better way of life? […] Enough is enough! It is time for decisive leadership and immediate action.

   • 2022 September 11, Lee Hsin-fang, Jonathan Chin, “Letter calls for Taiwan’s UN inclusion”, in Taipei Times‎^[3], Taipei, Taiwan: The Liberty Times Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2022-09-11, page 1:

     The "continued exclusion of Taiwan from the UN system is not only unwise, unjust and unfair, but also is a blatant violation of the principles of universality and self-determination as enshrined in the UN Charter, and must be rectified immediately," they [organizations representing overseas Taiwanese communities] said. "The time is now for the United Nations and the rest of the world to jointly stand up against China and its lawless and out-of-control bullying of Taiwan," they said, adding: "Enough is Enough."

   • 2023 February 22, Tom Harmon, “Open Access: Time for Action on Resolving Avanti’s West Coast Woes”, in Rail, number 977, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire: Bauer Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 62:

     On behalf of all the long-suffering passengers on the West Coast Main Line, enough is enough. Avanti needs to be put out of its misery… and soon.

Translations[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• Enough Is Enough (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• “enough is enough, phrase” under “enough, adj., pron., and n., and adv.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, December 2022.
• “enough is enough, phrase”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “enough is enough”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

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