inadequate
Americanadjective
-
not good enough for the purpose; inept or unsuitable.
This old tent they gave us is completely inadequate—it’s equally bad at keeping out both the rain and the bugs!
- Synonyms:
- imperfect, defective, incommensurate, incompetent, inapt, incomplete
- Antonyms:
- sufficient
-
not sufficient for the purpose; not enough.
The set of linens we received was so inadequate, we were asking friends for a loan of napkins and tablecloths.
-
Psychiatry. ineffectual in response to emotional, social, intellectual, and physical demands in the absence of any obvious mental or physical deficiency.
adjective
-
not adequate; insufficient
-
not capable or competent; lacking
Other Word Forms
- inadequacy noun
- inadequately adverb
Etymology
Origin of inadequate
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Several, like Omar, felt they had inadequate training or thought they would be able to leave after a year.
From BBC
"X have been woefully, woefully inadequate in terms of their response," the first minister said.
From BBC
The Malaysian regulator said it deemed the platform's safeguards inadequate, adding that access would resume only after the required changes are verified.
From Barron's
Warner’s board unanimously decided Paramount’s latest offer “remains inadequate particularly given the insufficient value it would provide.”
She said the Committee found the OSA to be "woefully inadequate" and called it "a shocking example of how UK citizens are left unprotected whilst social media companies act with impunity".
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
