deficit

[def-uh-sit, dih-fis-it]

noun

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.

deficit

/ 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

deficit

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

Other Word Forms

• superdeficit noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of deficit¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of deficit¹

C18: from Latin, literally: there is lacking, from dēficere to be lacking

Example Sentences

The country faces EU pressure to curb its deficit and debt, and it was the fight over cost-cutting measures that toppled Lecornu's two predecessors.

Read more on Barron's

And after two major overseas wars, the 2008-09 financial crisis, subsequent sluggish growth, and a pandemic, the U.S. budget swung from surplus at the turn of the century to deficits previously seen only in wartime.

Read more on Barron's

The move is also a sign of how Macron’s options have dwindled as he seeks a government capable of surviving a no-confidence vote and passing a budget that narrows the country’s gaping deficit.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The Congressional Budget Office reckons the recently passed One Big Beautiful Bill will add $2.2 trillion to deficits over the next four years alone.

Read more on MarketWatch

France’s Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu resigned on Monday, less than a month after being appointed as lawmakers continue to clash over reducing the budget deficit.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• loss 
• shortfall