Self-sufficiency is the ability to get the things you need — food, money, a home, everyday help — without waiting for other people to give them to you. People use it about a farm that grows its own food, a country that makes its own goods, or a person who cooks, earns, and solves problems without leaning on family or the government. It is a noun, a little formal, and it is usually praise: we admire someone who can stand on their own. Though actually, nobody is fully self-sufficient. We all use roads, shops, hospitals, and other people's work; the word often means "as independent as is practical", not "alone in the world". The matching adjective is self-sufficient.