Up to snuff

Meaning

Meeting the required standard.

Usage

Used when evaluating quality or performance.

Origin & History

Origins and dates here are approximate summaries. Many idioms have disputed or unknown origins, and not every date has been checked against a historical dictionary, so treat specific dates and stories as a starting point rather than a citation.

From early 19th-century British slang: people who took snuff (powdered tobacco) were thought to be sharp and hard to fool, so 'up to snuff' came to mean up to the mark.

Recorded in British English from the early 1800s.