What does satisfaction mean?
Satisfaction is the feeling that comes from having a need, desire, or expectation fulfilled. It describes a condition of contentment, accomplishment, or approval, as in finding satisfaction in a difficult job or taking satisfaction in doing something well. The word also has a more formal, practical meaning: the completion of an obligation, such as settling a debt, resolving a complaint, or meeting a contractual requirement. In everyday conversation, satisfaction is generally positive, although it can occasionally suggest that a person has stopped striving because their needs are met. Its related forms, including satisfy, satisfied, and satisfying, cover the verb of fulfilling a requirement, the adjective describing contentment, and the participle describing something that produces contentment. Together, they express the process of meeting expectations and the resulting sense of fulfillment.
The state of being satisfied, fulfilled, or content.
"The children laughed with satisfaction when they saw the finished model."
This is the most common modern meaning and often describes contentment arising from personal experience or accomplishment.
The fulfillment or settlement of an obligation, requirement, or claim.
"Payment of the invoice was accepted as satisfaction of the outstanding account."
This usage is more formal and occurs in legal, financial, administrative, and customer-service contexts.
The plural is grammatical but uncommon; singular usage is normally preferred when referring to a general state of contentment or fulfillment.
"The report compares customer satisfactions across several service providers."
From the Latin verb satisfacere, satisfaction literally meant making something sufficient: a promise, debt, or desire was satisfied when it was fulfilled.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does satisfaction come from?
Satisfaction derives from Middle English satisfacioun, from Old French satisfaction, from Latin satisfactionem, a noun formed from satisfacere, “to satisfy.” The Latin verb combined satis, meaning “enough,” with facere, “to make,” so its original sense was “to make sufficient.” The word developed through English into its modern meanings of fulfillment, payment of an obligation, and personal contentment. Related forms such as satisfactory, satisfy, satiate, and satiety belong to the same broad Latin root.
Related word forms
How satisfaction is actually used
In general use, satisfaction usually carries a positive sense of contentment or fulfillment. In business, legal, and financial contexts, it can also refer formally to the settlement of an obligation or the meeting of a requirement.
Easily confused with satisfaction
Satisfaction is the state of being content or fulfilled, whereas satisfying describes something that causes that feeling.
Satisfied describes a person or state that has met expectations, while satisfaction names the resulting feeling or condition.