lacking

[ lak-ing ]

/ ˈlæk ɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR lacking ON THESAURUS.COM

preposition

being without; not having; wanting; less: Lacking equipment, the laboratory couldn't undertake the research project.

adjective

wanting; deficient: He was found lacking in stamina.

Nearby words

Origin of lacking

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at lack, -ing²

lack

[ lak ]

/ læk /

noun

deficiency or absence of something needed, desirable, or customary: lack of money; lack of skill.

something missing or needed: After he left, they really felt the lack.

verb (used with object)

to be without or deficient in: to lack ability; to lack the necessities of life.

to fall short in respect of: He lacks three votes to win.

verb (used without object)

to be absent or missing, as something needed or desirable: Three votes are lacking to make a majority.

Verb Phrases

lack in, to be short of or deficient in: What he lacks in brains, he makes up for in brawn.

Origin of lack

1125–75; Middle English lak; cognate with Middle Low German lak, Middle Dutch lac deficiency; akin to Old Norse lakr deficient

SYNONYMS FOR lack

1. dearth, scarcity, paucity, deficit, insufficiency. 1, 3. want, need.

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ANTONYMS FOR lack

1. surplus.

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Synonym study

3. Lack, want, need, require as verbs all stress the absence of something desirable, important, or necessary. Lack means to be without or to have less than a desirable quantity of something: to lack courage, sufficient money, enough members to make a quorum. Want may imply some urgency in fulfilling a requirement or a desire: Willing workers are badly wanted. The room wants some final touch to make it homey. Need often suggests even more urgency than does want stressing the necessity of supplying what is lacking: to need an operation, better food, a match to light the fire. Require, which expresses necessity as strongly as need, occurs most frequently in serious or formal contexts: Your presence at the hearing is required. Successful experimentation requires careful attention to detail.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for lacking

“The psychology of BDSM is lacking in other formal training regiments and interactions,” added Stella.
Dungeons and Genital Clamps: Inside a Legendary BDSM Chateau|Ian Frisch|December 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Lacking any sense of irony, Eldridge made campaign-finance reform a signature plank.
The Rise and Fall of Chris Hughes and Sean Eldridge, America’s Worst Gay Power Couple|James Kirchick|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His only known run-in with the law was a 300-euro fine for failing to stop at the scene of an accident and lacking insurance.
Showing the Faces of Its Murderers, ISIS Shows Its Global Reach|Tracy McNicoll|November 18, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Strapped for medical staff and lacking in the resources needed to treat the 5,338 suspected cases, the numbers are soaring.
Fighting Ebola and Starvation in Sierra Leone|Abby Haglage|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

His tweets and Instagram photos also seem to point to a clear motive, lacking in so many other school shootings.
The Homecoming Prince Who Tweeted His Killing Spree|Brandy Zadrozny|October 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There the American troops, lacking necessary food and blankets, shivered and almost starved during the long winter.
Lafayette, We Come!|Rupert S. Holland
"He certainly is not lacking in audacity," thought Mr. Morgan.
Brave and Bold|Horatio Alger
Lacking an organizer, nobody knew what to do; and if he had wished to enhance his value, he couldn't have chosen a better way.
The Chauffeur and the Chaperon|C. N. Williamson
Lacking a coffee urn, some grocers make their brews in large-size home-service coffee-making devices.
All About Coffee|William H. Ukers
I felt, with renewed force, that a note was lacking to the full harmony of my life, and I threw myself upon a bank.
Lippincott's Magazine. Vol. XII, No. 33. December, 1873.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for lacking

lack

/ (læk) /

noun

an insufficiency, shortage, or absence of something required or desired

something that is required but is absent or in short supply

verb

(when intr, often foll by in or for) to be deficient (in) or have need (of)to lack purpose

Word Origin for lack

C12: related to Middle Dutch laken to be wanting

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

Word Origin and History for lacking

lack

c.1300, "absence, want; shortage, deficiency," perhaps from an unrecorded Old English *lac, or else borrowed from Middle Dutch lak "deficiency, fault;" in either case from Proto-Germanic *laka- (cf. Old Frisian lek "disadvantage, damage," Old Norse lakr "lacking"), from PIE *leg- "to dribble, trickle." Middle English also had lackless "without blame or fault."

lack

late 12c., perhaps from Middle Dutch laken "to be wanting," from lak (n.) "deficiency, fault," or an unrecorded native cognate word (see lack (n.)). Related: Lacked; lacking.

lacking

preposition

adjective

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Nearby words

Origin of lacking

lack

noun

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

Verb Phrases

Origin of lack

Synonym study

Examples from the Web for lacking

lack

noun

verb

Word Origin for lack

lack

lack