inefficient
Americanadjective
-
not efficient; unable to effect or achieve the desired result with reasonable economy of means.
-
lacking in ability, incompetent.
adjective
-
unable to perform a task or function to the best advantage; wasteful or incompetent
-
unable to produce the desired result
Synonym Usage
See incapable.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of inefficient
Explanation
Inefficient things waste time, money, or other resources. Your old inefficient dishwasher uses much more water and electricity than a new model would. Shame on you. Inefficient businesses have trouble making money and growing, and an inefficient city bus system might transport just a few passengers at a time. If your car is inefficient, it gets terrible gas mileage and is expensive to drive. If something is efficient, it's productive and inexpensive. Inefficient has the opposite meaning, which is clear from the "not" prefix in-.
Vocabulary lists containing inefficient
"Sorry, Wrong Number," Vocabulary from the play
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Prefixes: in-, im-, il-, ir-
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Lawn Boy
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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.
But frustration has grown, with some saying the government's response is too slow and inefficient.
From BBC • Jun. 28, 2026
In particular, UniCredit is proposing to cut back Commerzbank's international network, deemed too complex and inefficient, and refocus the bank on its activities in Germany.
From Barron's • Jun. 16, 2026
It is also economically inefficient, and it is politically dangerous.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 5, 2026
The result of all these factors is that the price that drivers see at the pump mostly reflects the global price of crude, plus a stack of domestic costs, only some of which are inefficient.
From Salon • May 13, 2026
“So inefficient, so wasteful of effort, and so utterly exhausting” was the old plow, Temple wrote, “that this deficiency of plowing may rank as mankind’s single greatest waste of time and energy.”
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
