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.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inefficiency
Swift’s management of her career has been touted as a model to reduce the structural inefficiencies in music licensing and broadcasting, to promote equity sharing with record labels, and to give artists in general more control over their creative work.
—
Time, 5 June 2025
The experience of working with elite football clubs exposed Bord to inefficiencies, and the absence of sophisticated algorithms that his company designs.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 31 May 2025
Companies that pursue aggressive growth believe that, over time, economies of scale, brand dominance and revenue momentum will smooth out inefficiencies.
—Ayo Adepoju, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
Congress can and should find bipartisan ways to strengthen Medicaid, modernize the system, and root out inefficiencies without sacrificing access.
—Nancy G. Brinker, Sun Sentinel, 26 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for inefficiency
Time, 5 June 2025
The experience of working with elite football clubs exposed Bord to inefficiencies, and the absence of sophisticated algorithms that his company designs.
—Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 31 May 2025
Companies that pursue aggressive growth believe that, over time, economies of scale, brand dominance and revenue momentum will smooth out inefficiencies.
—Ayo Adepoju, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
Congress can and should find bipartisan ways to strengthen Medicaid, modernize the system, and root out inefficiencies without sacrificing access.
—Nancy G. Brinker, Sun Sentinel, 26 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for inefficiency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inefficiency
Noun
-
Indeed, the root cause of the Iberian grid’s failure on a clear, windy day when 70% of Spain’s generation capacity was coming from renewables was the Spanish grid’s inability to gracefully handle such a surplus of renewables generation.—
Erik Kobayashi-Solomon,
Forbes.com,
8 June 2025
-
Brennan grilled Wolfe about his use of the Signal app to share encrypted messages with the defense and about his inability to produce communications under a court order because his texts were deleted.—
Michael Ruiz,
FOXNews.com,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
It was hoped by Orioles fans that, after years of incompetence and penuriousness by the Angeloses, Rubenstein would spend money to keep the team competitive with the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays.—
Bill Madden,
New York Daily News,
24 May 2025
-
The chaos and incompetence of the tariff rollout has led to collapsing sentiment.—
Kevin Coldiron,
Forbes.com,
7 May 2025
Noun
-
Outside of your job, take time to strengthen your incompetency by undergoing extra training and courses, and attending events if necessary.—
Rachel Wells,
Forbes.com,
5 May 2025
-
It's been a revolving door of incompetency under center for the Browns this year.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
2 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inefficiency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inefficiency. Accessed 12 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share