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insufficiency

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Etymology

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From in- +‎ sufficiency.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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insufficiency (plural insufficiencies)

  1. The lack of sufficiency: a shortage, the state of having or being not enough (of something).
    Synonyms: lack, unsufficiency (obsolete)
    Near-synonyms: deficiency (broadly synonymous), inadequacy
    The troops went hungry because of the insufficiency of their supplies.
    • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Chapter XXI. Lady Marchmont’s Journal.”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. [], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, [], →OCLC, page 160:
      She may crowd her days with gaiety, variety, and what are called amusements; she will do so only to find their insufficiency.
    • 1962 October, “Beyond the Channel: Western Germany: Rhine right-bank line re-signalling”, in Modern Railways, page 276:
      On a recent trip down the Rhine many of the trains we saw were still steam-hauled, presumably through an insufficiency of electric locomotives, as yet, to deal with peak summer traffic.

Usage notes

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See deficiency § Usage notes.

Derived terms

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Translations

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