deficient

[ dih-fish-uhnt ]
See synonyms for deficient on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. lacking some element or characteristic; defective: deficient in taste.

  2. insufficient; inadequate: deficient knowledge.

noun
  1. a person who is deficient, especially one who is mentally defective.

Origin of deficient

1
First recorded in 1575–85; from Latin dēficient-, stem of dēficiēns “failing,” present participle of dēficere “to fail, run short, lack, weaken,” from dē- de- + ficere, combining form of facere “to do, make” (see also do1 )

Other words from deficient

  • de·fi·cient·ly, adverb
  • non·de·fi·cient, adjective
  • non·de·fi·cient·ly, adverb
  • pre·de·fi·cient, adjective
  • pre·de·fi·cient·ly, adverb
  • un·de·fi·cient, adjective
  • un·de·fi·cient·ly, adverb

Words Nearby deficient

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use deficient in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for deficient

deficient

/ (dɪˈfɪʃənt) /


adjective
  1. lacking some essential; incomplete; defective

  2. inadequate in quantity or supply; insufficient

Origin of deficient

1
C16: from Latin dēficiēns lacking, from dēficere to fall short; see defect

Derived forms of deficient

  • deficiently, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012