as in shortages
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
a growing deficit in the number of hours devoted to sleep
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Recent Examples of deficits
Saudi Arabia expects wider budget deficits this year and in 2026 after lowering revenue projections and boosting spending.
—
Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 1 Oct. 2025
The Leafs can win more games 2-1, but also struggle more to come back from 2-1 deficits.
—The Athletic Nhl, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
But for the millions of people bearing the brunt of housing deficits and the global housing mismatch, this sounds like a promising approach to partially tackling these issues.
—Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 30 Sep. 2025
His game-winner came on the opening shift of overtime after Carolina erased deficits of 2-0 and 3-2.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
James went down a lengthy list of bugaboos that hurt the Chargers, including but not limited to 14 penalties totaling 107 yards, the Giants’ 7-for-15 efficiency on third downs, a lackluster start that featured deficits of 10-0 and 13-3 in the first half and a failure to force a New York turnover.
—Elliott Teaford, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
Ongoing irresponsibility by Congress, which used the fund to hide even larger deficits in the general Treasury accounts, has been the problem.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 28 Sep. 2025
These signs can vary widely and include disorientation, various nerve deficits, loss of vision, vestibular signs leading to loss of balance, neck and back pain, and even seizures.
—Dr. John De Jong, Boston Herald, 28 Sep. 2025
This treatment fixes core biological deficits and therefore could be disease-modifying.
—Alice Park, Time, 23 Sep. 2025
Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 1 Oct. 2025
The Leafs can win more games 2-1, but also struggle more to come back from 2-1 deficits.
—The Athletic Nhl, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
But for the millions of people bearing the brunt of housing deficits and the global housing mismatch, this sounds like a promising approach to partially tackling these issues.
—Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 30 Sep. 2025
His game-winner came on the opening shift of overtime after Carolina erased deficits of 2-0 and 3-2.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2025
James went down a lengthy list of bugaboos that hurt the Chargers, including but not limited to 14 penalties totaling 107 yards, the Giants’ 7-for-15 efficiency on third downs, a lackluster start that featured deficits of 10-0 and 13-3 in the first half and a failure to force a New York turnover.
—Elliott Teaford, Oc Register, 28 Sep. 2025
Ongoing irresponsibility by Congress, which used the fund to hide even larger deficits in the general Treasury accounts, has been the problem.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 28 Sep. 2025
These signs can vary widely and include disorientation, various nerve deficits, loss of vision, vestibular signs leading to loss of balance, neck and back pain, and even seizures.
—Dr. John De Jong, Boston Herald, 28 Sep. 2025
This treatment fixes core biological deficits and therefore could be disease-modifying.
—Alice Park, Time, 23 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deficits
Noun
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Additionally, the report found that 47% of companies looked to automating or implementing new technologies to address worker shortages, a five percentage point increase from 2024.—
Anna Kleiber,
jsonline.com,
2 Oct. 2025
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Management later confirmed the closures, citing power and gas shortages, as well as insufficient purchase orders.—
Mayu Saini,
Sourcing Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This absence — of God, of love, of plain community spirit — is a metaphor for the whole parish, where everyone is defined by their own lacks and deficiencies, the weaknesses that cause Wicks to despise them and vow to bring down them all.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
6 Sep. 2025
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But Davies’s film has a patience and lightness of touch that Scorsese’s lacks, as well as a note-perfect lead in Gillian Anderson.—
Elle Carroll,
Vulture,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Rocha also has language deficiencies and has low cognitive functioning, testing with an IQ of 81 as a child, according to Reynolds.—
PJ Green,
Kansas City Star,
3 Oct. 2025
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The team had clear deficiencies going into October.—
Aaliyan Mohammed,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deficits.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deficits. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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