as in inability
the lack of ability to do something or produce something without wasting materials, time, or energy
The candidate blamed her opponent for the local government's inefficiency.
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Recent Examples of inefficiency
The rest of the energy is either kept in the tokamak to maintain the fusion reactions or lost due to inefficiencies in the heat and energy transfer of the system.
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ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
Fixing the Blind Spots For an Enterprise business intelligence engineer Amazon relies on, the mandate is simple: find the inefficiencies and eliminate them.
—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
His passing, poise and outside shooting have allowed the Knicks to solve a great and hyper-athletic San Antonio defense even with Brunson experiencing atypical inefficiency from the field.
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Dan Woike,
New York Times,
8 June 2026
The industry’s push for harmonized rules is a recognition that fragmentation imposes its own monopoly — one of inefficiency, higher prices and stalled digital adoption.
—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
8 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for inefficiency
ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
Fixing the Blind Spots For an Enterprise business intelligence engineer Amazon relies on, the mandate is simple: find the inefficiencies and eliminate them.
—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
His passing, poise and outside shooting have allowed the Knicks to solve a great and hyper-athletic San Antonio defense even with Brunson experiencing atypical inefficiency from the field.
—
Dan Woike,
New York Times,
8 June 2026
The industry’s push for harmonized rules is a recognition that fragmentation imposes its own monopoly — one of inefficiency, higher prices and stalled digital adoption.
—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
8 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for inefficiency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inefficiency
Noun
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This move follows a successful loan spell at Monaco and his inability to impress new coach Hansi Flick.
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The ripple effect of food insecurity around the world from Ukraine’s inability to ship its normally massive grain crops.
Noun
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The most serious charges — which included incompetence, negligence and failure of duty — were dismissed.
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There is where their incompetence comes in.
Noun
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Federal agents have descended upon the home of Cindy Rodriguez Singh, the North Texas mom who was recently sent to a state hospital after an incompetency ruling in the murder of her young son.
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The longer the delay, the more the system risks turning temporary incompetency into long-term confinement.
Noun
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Nwodim pointed out that O’Connell has firsthand experience of their ineffectiveness.
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See and assess your teams’ repetitive tasks, ineffectiveness and common delays.
Cite this Entry
“Inefficiency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inefficiency. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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