deficit

American  

[def-uh-sit, dih-fis-it] / ˈdɛf ə sɪt, dɪˈfɪs ɪt /

noun

• deficits
  plural

1. the amount by which a sum of money falls short of the required amount.

2. the amount by which expenditures or liabilities exceed income or assets.

3. a lack or shortage; deficiency.

4. a disadvantage, impairment, or handicap.

   The team's major deficit is its poor pitching.

5. a loss, as in the operation of a business.

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deficit British  

/ ˈdɛfɪsɪt, dɪˈfɪsɪt /

noun

1. the amount by which an actual sum is lower than that expected or required

2. 1. an excess of liabilities over assets

   2. an excess of expenditures over revenues during a certain period

   3. an excess of payments over receipts on the balance of payments

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deficit Cultural  

1. A shortage, especially the amount by which a sum of money falls short of what is required; a debt.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superdeficit
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• deficits
  plural

Etymology

Origin of deficit

First recorded in 1775–85; from Latin dēficit “(it) lacks,” 3rd-person singular present of dēficere “to fail, run short, lack, weaken”; see deficient

Explanation

If you're running a deficit, you are losing. You might be losing money or losing a game. Either way, you better make up for it. When the government runs on a deficit, often the loss can be offset by a raise in taxes. If you have a deficit of iron in your body, you should consider eating more spinach. The word deficit comes from the Latin deficit meaning "it is wanting." A deficit is characterized by the wanting of something missing.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deficit deficits

During economic downturns, when revenues decline, they cannot rely on deficit financing to maintain spending.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026

In less than a minute, Miles had single-handedly turned a two-point Lynx deficit into a five-point lead.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

Ahead of the meeting, Zelensky revealed the extent of the deficit, releasing usually closely guarded numbers.

From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026

People may also subconsciously move less throughout the rest of the day after doing a workout, which means exercise may have less impact on their overall calorie deficit.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 22, 2026

We hung in there most of the match, but had acquired a large deficit going into the seventh bout.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

By using existing data to flag early movement deficits and balance loss, AI acts as an early warning engine—routing workers directly into preventive physical therapy before catastrophic injury occurs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026

Borrowing costs rose across the board, and suddenly running big deficits became much less affordable.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

"We found fundamental changes in brain circuits occurring in young mice that still had normal learning and memory, and importantly, that those changes predicted the development of cognitive deficits at older ages."

From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026

Meanwhile, Bessent was on TV claiming that there is a “very good chance” that federal deficits have “peaked.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

Milton, however, was aware of none of these physical deficits.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Related Words

• loss
• shortfall