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I'm looking for a word that means the opposite of shoehorned, ie. something that DOES fit its purpose well.

shoehorn (v.) (transitive, figuratively) To force (something) into (a tight space); to squeeze (something) into (a schedule, etc); to exert great effort to insert or include (something); to include (something) despite potent reasons not to. - Wiktionary

Ideally not a compound word, like well-suited. Appropriate is close, but not quite.

Example:

We will be judging on the following:

  1. How well-suited the design is for the problem being solved.
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    What definition of "shoehorned" are you using?
    – KillingTime
    Commented Sep 12, 2022 at 22:03
  • "Used for a specific purpose even when not well suited"
    – zud3652
    Commented Sep 12, 2022 at 22:06
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    Basically, "shoehorned" means "crammed" or "forced into".
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Sep 12, 2022 at 22:15
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    Use your own solution, well-suited, bespoke, tailor-made, or fits-like-a-glove.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Sep 12, 2022 at 23:15
  • 1
    How appropriate the design is … or the appropriateness of the design …
    – Jim
    Commented Sep 13, 2022 at 0:36

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'Fits like a glove' would be the appropriate phrase.

Therefore, 'suited', I suggest.

a. transitive. To be suitable or appropriate for (something); to be fitted or adapted to; to meet the requirements of.

Oxford English Dictionary

(One does not need the compound 'well-suited'. If a thing is suited, then it is necessarily a good fit.)

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  • I guess well-suited arose as a contrast with ill-suited. But "suited" has various meanings in addition to "appropriate/fitted", such as "dressed in a suit", so "well-suited" has its place to avoid ambiguity: a suited man may not necessarily be well-suited for all events.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Sep 13, 2022 at 15:31

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