insufficient

adjective

in·​suf·​fi·​cient ˌin(t)-sə-ˈfi-shənt 

: not sufficient : inadequate

insufficient funds

especially : lacking adequate power, capacity, or competence

insufficient bandwidth

insufficiently adverb

Synonyms of insufficient

• lacking
• inadequate
• scarce
• low

Examples of insufficient in a Sentence

The case was thrown out because of insufficient evidence.

there's been an insufficient number of volunteers for the job, so I'll have to select someone

Recent Examples on the Web

The court then dismissed the felony charge for insufficient evidence and ended Buzzard’s pretrial supervision, according to the prosecution. —Stepheny Price, FOXNews.com, 21 Nov. 2025

Yach has come to believe that the traditional approach to smoking cessation is insufficient. —NPR, 21 Nov. 2025

But that technical legal definition is unedifying and wildly insufficient. —MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025

Instead, a group of Senate Democrats settled to reopen the government with only the promise of a future vote on healthcare, an offer Republicans first floated to Democrats a month earlier but was roundly rejected at the time as insufficient. —Ramsey Touchberry, The Washington Examiner, 16 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Late Latin insufficient-, insufficiens, from Latin in- + sufficient-, sufficiens sufficient

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for insufficient

• beneficent
• coefficient
• inefficient
• deficient
• efficient
• omniscient
• proficient
• sufficient

Kids Definition

insufficient

adjective

in·​suf·​fi·​cient ˌin(t)-sə-ˈfish-ənt 

: not sufficient : inadequate

insufficiently adverb