deficit
[ def-uh-sit; British also dih-fis-it ]
/ ˈdɛf ə sɪt; British also dɪˈfɪs ɪt /
noun
the amount by which a sum of money falls short of the required amount.
the amount by which expenditures or liabilities exceed income or assets.
a lack or shortage; deficiency.
a disadvantage, impairment, or handicap: The team's major deficit is its poor pitching.
a loss, as in the operation of a business.
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RELATED WORDS
loss, shortfall, scantiness, default, lack, inadequacy, paucity, deficiency, insufficiency, shortcoming, arrears, dues, defalcation, underage
Nearby words
- deficiency judgment,
- deficiency symptom,
- deficient,
- deficient number,
- deficiently,
- deficit financing,
- deficit spending,
- defier,
- defilade,
- defile
Origin of deficit
1775–85; < Latin dēficit (it) lacks, 3rd person singular present indicative of dēficere; see deficient
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for deficit
deficit
/ (ˈdɛfɪsɪt, dɪˈfɪsɪt) /
noun
the amount by which an actual sum is lower than that expected or required
- an excess of liabilities over assets
- an excess of expenditures over revenues during a certain period
- an excess of payments over receipts on the balance of payments
Word Origin for deficit
C18: from Latin, literally: there is lacking, from dēficere to be lacking
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
deficit
1782, from French déficit (late 17c.), from Latin deficit "it is wanting," an introductory word in clauses of inventory, third person singular present indicative of deficere "to be deficient" (see deficient).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
deficit
[ dĕf′ĭ-sĭt ]
n.
A lack or deficiency of a substance.
A lack or impairment in mental or physical functioning.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
deficit
A shortage, especially the amount by which a sum of money falls short of what is required; a debt.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.