imbalance

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noun im·bal·ance \ (ˌ)im-ˈba-lən(t)s \

Definition of imbalance

:lack of balance :the state of being out of equilibrium or out of proportion

a vitamin imbalance

racial imbalance in schools

—

imbalanced

play \(ˌ)im-ˈba-lən(t)st\ adjective

See imbalance defined for English-language learners

See imbalance defined for kids

Examples of imbalance in a Sentence

Her depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain.
the problem of racial imbalance in schools

Recent Examples of imbalance from the Web

Within this data, certain chemical imbalances could be indicative of a habitable environment or even alien life—

— jay bennett, Popular Mechanics, "The James Webb Space Telescope Will Study the Solar System's Watery Moons," 25 Aug. 2017
Skin bummer: Melasma This hormonal imbalance (often caused by taking birth control pills) results in brown spots on your forehead, cheeks, or above your top lip.

— nicole catanese, Cosmopolitan, "The 8 Most Annoying Skin Problems Every Girl Deals With," 24 Aug. 2017
China’s big trade surpluses hog all the headlines, but imbalances go both ways.

— Bloomberg.com, "With Some Countries, China Is in the Red," 20 Aug. 2017
That imbalance widened dramatically this year as China cut back on buying from the North.

— eric talmadge, The Seattle Times, "The real revolution in NKorea is rise of consumer culture," 17 Aug. 2017
The takeaway: MLB does not suffer from competitive imbalance.

— paul daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Paul Daugherty: Ditch the NCAA hypocrisy and let kids major in football," 10 Aug. 2017
Reinsurance programmes would bring premiums down and begin to redress the imbalance.

— The Economist, "Revive, don’t repealThree steps to fix Obamacare," 20 July 2017
And a vicious cycle of elevated blood sugar, which triggers sweet cravings followed by moodiness, weight gain, and even hormonal imbalances.

— elizabeth varnell, Vogue, "The Healthiest Way to Make Your Morning Juice—Hold the Sugar," 15 July 2017
Silver also spoke about the perception of conference imbalance, and the notion of seeding the top 16 teams for the playoffs with no limitations based on conferences.

— jon krawczynski, The Seattle Times, "NBA eliminates timeouts to keep the ends of games moving," 12 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'imbalance.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of imbalance

circa 1890

IMBALANCE Defined for English Language Learners

imbalance

play

noun

Definition of imbalance for English Language Learners

: a state or condition in which different things do not occur in equal or proper amounts

Medical Dictionary

imbalance

play

noun im·bal·ance \ (ˈ)im-ˈbal-ən(t)s \

medical Definition of imbalance

:lack of balance :the state of being out of equilibrium or out of proportion: as

a :loss of parallel relation between the optical axes of the eyes caused by faulty action of the extrinsic muscles and often resulting in diplopia

b :absence of biological equilibrium

a vitamin imbalance

if the ductus arteriosus fails to close, a circulatory imbalance results
—E. B. Steen & Ashley Montagu

c :a disproportion between the number of males and females in a population

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imbalanced

play \-ən(t)st\ adjective

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See words that rhyme with imbalance Spanish Central: Translation of imbalance Nglish: Translation of imbalance for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of imbalance for Arabic speakers

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imbalance

Definition of imbalance

imbalanced

Examples of imbalance in a Sentence

Recent Examples of imbalance from the Web

First Known Use of imbalance

IMBALANCE Defined for English Language Learners

imbalance

Definition of imbalance for English Language Learners

Medical Dictionary

imbalance

medical Definition of imbalance

imbalanced

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imbalance

Definition of imbalance

imbalanced

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Examples of imbalance in a Sentence

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First Known Use of imbalance

IMBALANCE Defined for English Language Learners

imbalance

Definition of imbalance for English Language Learners

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imbalance

medical Definition of imbalance

imbalanced

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