lack
noun
an absence or inadequate amount of something needed, desirable, or customary.
lacked
-
past participleof lack.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
-
past tense formof lack.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
lacknounan absence or inadequate amount of something needed, desirable, or customary.
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.
An official inquiry into a Pakistan hospital fire that killed 14 babies last month has found the neonatal unit lacked fire alarms and sprinklers, while firefighters reported that escape routes were "locked or obstructed".
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Government spokeswoman Maud Bregeon noted that around one in ten filling stations in France lacked at least one fuel, with the vast majority of them TotalEnergies stations.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
The report also found that communication to fire survivors was fragmented and lacked predictable pathways to reach residents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026
Regional markets lacked cues given Monday’s Labor Day holiday, and investors are now looking to U.S. consumer inflation data.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
The mutants clearly lacked some factor—a chemical—that determines the front versus the back of the fly.
From "The Gene" by Siddhartha Mukherjee
