Dictionary.com

deficiency

[ dih-fish-uhn-see ]
/ dɪˈfɪʃ ən si /
Save This Word!
See synonyms for: deficiency / deficiencies on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural de·fi·cien·cies.
the state of being deficient; lack; incompleteness; insufficiency.
the amount lacked; a deficit.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Also Obsolete, deficience [dih-fish-uhns] /dɪˈfɪʃ əns/ .

Origin of deficiency

First recorded in 1625–35; from Late Latin dēficientia, Latin dēficient- (stem of dēficiēns ); see origin at deficient, -ency

OTHER WORDS FROM deficiency

non·de·fi·cien·cy, noun, plural non·de·fi·cien·cies.pre·de·fi·cien·cy, noun, plural pre·de·fi·cien·cies.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use deficiency in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for deficiency

deficiency
/ (dɪˈfɪʃənsɪ) /

noun plural -cies
the state or quality of being deficient
a lack or insufficiency; shortage
another word for deficit
biology the absence of a gene or a region of a chromosome normally present
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
FEEDBACK