Categories: GeneralSynonyms

DEFICIENT: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for DEFICIENT?

Need another word that means the same as “deficient”? Find 22 synonyms and 30 related words for “deficient” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Deficient” are: insufficient, lacking, wanting, inferior, substandard, defective, inadequate, limited, poor, scant, faulty, flawed, imperfect, impaired, shoddy, scrappy, sketchy, weak, unsound, second-rate, shabby, incomplete

Deficient as an Adjective

Definitions of "Deficient" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “deficient” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

  • Inadequate in amount or degree.
  • Having mental disabilities.
  • Not having enough of a specified quality or ingredient.
  • Insufficient or inadequate.
  • Of a quantity not able to fulfill a need or requirement.
  • Falling short of some prescribed norm.

Synonyms of "Deficient" as an adjective (22 Words)

defectiveMarkedly subnormal in structure or function or intelligence or behavior.
I returned the appliance because it was defective.
faulty(of reasoning and other mental processes) mistaken or misleading because of flaws.
Faulty logic.
flawedHaving a blemish or flaw.
A flawed diamond.
impairedDiminished in strength, quality, or utility.
Impaired driving charges.
imperfect(of a tense) denoting a past action in progress but not completed at the time in question.
Drainage here is imperfect.
inadequateOf insufficient quantity to meet a need.
A sad solitary inadequate man.
incompleteNot yet finished.
The analysis remains incomplete.
inferiorOf low or inferior quality.
Inferior goods.
insufficientOf a quantity not able to fulfill a need or requirement.
There was insufficient evidence to convict him.
lacking(of a quality) absent.
There was something lacking in our marriage.
limitedNot unlimited.
I think he is a very limited man.
poorLacking sufficient money to live at a standard considered comfortable or normal in a society.
The country had a poor economy.
scantBarely amounting to a specified number or quantity.
She weighed a scant two pounds.
scrappyFull of fighting spirit.
He had a scrappy New York temperament.
second-rateModerate to inferior in quality.
shabbyMean and unworthy and despicable.
A shabby fellow in slippers and an undershirt.
shoddyCheap and shoddy Judith Crist.
A shoddy misuse of the honours system.
sketchy(of a picture) resembling a sketch; consisting of outline without much detail.
Once the story does come out the fact that you tried to hide it will seem sketchy.
substandardBelow the usual or required standard.
Substandard spellings.
unsoundPhysically unsound or diseased.
An unsound foundation.
wantingInadequate in amount or degree.
The English batting technique has been found wanting.
weakRelating to or denoting the weakest of the known kinds of force between particles which acts only at distances less than about 10 cm is very much weaker than the electromagnetic and the strong interactions and conserves neither strangeness parity nor isospin.
A weak plot.

Usage Examples of "Deficient" as an adjective

  • The documentary evidence is deficient.
  • Deficient in common sense.
  • A deficient education.
  • This diet is deficient in vitamin B.

Associations of "Deficient" (30 Words)

absentLost in thought; showing preoccupation.
Most pupils were absent from school at least once.
adequacyThe state or quality of being adequate.
He questioned the adequacy of the usual sentimental interpretation of the Golden Rule.
crampedInhibiting the development of someone or something.
Trying to bring children up in cramped high rise apartments.
deficiencyThe amount by which something, especially revenue, falls short; a deficit.
A budget deficiency of 96 billion.
inadequate(of a person) unable to deal with a situation or with life.
I felt like a fraud inadequate to the task.
incompletenessThe state of being crude and incomplete and imperfect.
The study was criticized for incompleteness of data but it stimulated further research.
insufficientNot enough; inadequate.
There was insufficient evidence to convict him.
lackingNot available or in short supply.
Adequate resources are sadly lacking.
limitedDenoting a limited company used after a company name.
A limited circle of friends.
meagerDeficient in amount or quality or extent.
Meager resources.
meagerlyTo a meager degree or in a meager manner.
These voices are meagerly represented at the conference.
measlyContemptibly small in amount.
A measly tip.
minusOn the negative side or lower end of a scale.
Minus five.
paucityAn insufficient quantity or number.
A paucity of information.
pittanceA very small or inadequate amount of money.
He paid his workers a pittance.
rareNot widely distributed.
Total eclipses are rare events.
rarelyNot often.
The rarely fine Sheraton bookcase.
rarenessNoteworthy scarcity.
raritySomething unusual — perhaps worthy of collecting.
The rarity of the condition.
scantLimit in quality or quantity.
A scant cup of sugar.
scantyShort underpants for women or children (usually used in the plural.
They paid whatever they could out of their scanty wages to their families.
scarceScarcely.
Would have scarce arrived before she would have found some excuse to leave.
shortOf a broker position in the market etc buying or based on short stocks or other securities or commodities.
Money is short.
sometimesOccasionally, rather than all of the time.
Sometimes I want to do things on my own.
sparseNot dense.
Trees were sparse.
subsistRemain in force or effect.
The court may treat a contract as still subsisting.
substandardFalling short of some prescribed norm.
Substandard spellings.
undermannedInadequate in number of workers or assistants etc.
undersizedOf less than the usual size.
The undersized cubs may not survive the winter.
wantingInadequate in amount or degree.
Tested and found wanting.
Alexei

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