as in shortage
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
there is a deficiency of fresh food in the diet of many of the working poor
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Recent Examples of deficiency
Health inspectors also noted record-keeping deficiencies, such as food packaging, food establishment permit, and food manager certificates.
—
Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2026
Anthony’s defensive deficiencies, especially his throwing, have been on full display in an ugly 2-8 start for the Red Sox this season and were at the center of another rough loss Monday night at Fenway Park, this time to the Brewers.
—Greg Dudek, Boston Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
Her departure was warranted based on performance deficiencies rather than gender considerations.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
This phase is designed to address deficiencies identified during initial operations, complete technical refinements, and implement maintenance or system adjustments before the platform transitions into a regular deployment cycle.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 4 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for deficiency
Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Apr. 2026
Anthony’s defensive deficiencies, especially his throwing, have been on full display in an ugly 2-8 start for the Red Sox this season and were at the center of another rough loss Monday night at Fenway Park, this time to the Brewers.
—Greg Dudek, Boston Herald, 7 Apr. 2026
Her departure was warranted based on performance deficiencies rather than gender considerations.
—Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026
This phase is designed to address deficiencies identified during initial operations, complete technical refinements, and implement maintenance or system adjustments before the platform transitions into a regular deployment cycle.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 4 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for deficiency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deficiency
Noun
-
Police began cracking down Saturday, using pepper spray to help clear protesters at the Whitegate refinery in County Cork and vowing to remove others who were endangering critical infrastructure and public safety because gas shortages could prevent response by emergency services.—
Brian Melley,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Apr. 2026
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The International Energy Agency, S&P Global, BloombergNEF, Wood Mackenzie, and Goldman Sachs have all corroborated Grantham’s point, with the IEA projecting shortages in copper and lithium within a decade.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Last year there were a lack of women’s matches during the night sessions.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
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Investigators believe that Obeidin fell asleep as a result of the lack of sleep from the fraternity activities.—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Deficiency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deficiency. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
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