undermanned

adjective

un·​der·​manned ˌən-dər-ˈmand How to pronounce undermanned (audio)
: inadequately staffed

Examples of undermanned in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The Warriors have lost too many games against undermanned teams. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2024 The play came after another turnover, a string of mistakes increasingly maddening and propping open the door against the severely undermanned Timberwolves. Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2024 Facing continual Russian attacks, undermanned units could become increasingly hollowed out and lose the ability to defend themselves. Dara Massicot, Foreign Affairs, 8 Mar. 2024 The likelihood of a dazzling offensive display would be high, with the league's third- and fourth-ranked attacks looking like too much for either undermanned defense to handle. Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 Mason Rudolph has kept Pittsburgh’s season alive with two stellar starts, but even an undermanned Ravens defense is going to cause problems. Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 5 Jan. 2024 All of this significantly strained U.S. naval manpower, causing ships to deploy undermanned and for longer durations. Gil Barndollar, TIME, 12 Feb. 2024 Troops are being rotated from units in the rear to join undermanned infantry units at the front, and there are shortages of critical supplies needed to repair and maintain Ukraine’s armored vehicles. Marc Santora Tyler Hicks, New York Times, 4 Feb. 2024 Since then, these undermanned installations have experienced as many as 150 attacks from missiles, drones, rockets, and the like. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 31 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'undermanned.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1848, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of undermanned was in 1848

Dictionary Entries Near undermanned

Cite this Entry

“Undermanned.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/undermanned. Accessed 17 Apr. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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