Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

close enough for government work

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.95 in modern English

Syllables
close e-nough -for -gov-ern-men-t -work
IPA
50
Scrabble Score
28
Letters
8
Syllables
16
Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Adequate; acceptable as government work, imperfect but not worth the time nor effort of improving.

American usage; Derogatory; Humorous

adj

Acceptable; equivalent to government work, neither worse nor better.

Canadian usage; Humorous

Usage

Synonyms

good enough for government work satisfactory

Questions

What does close enough for government work mean?
Adequate; acceptable as government work, imperfect but not worth the time nor effort of improving.

How to pronounce close enough for government work

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “close enough for government work”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “close enough for government work”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “close enough for government work” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.