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# deficient

«deficient» in Mova's school dictionary: **needed, especially in the body or diet: «deficient in iron»** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

adjective (deficient; more deficient)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Not having enough of something that is needed, especially in the body or diet: «deficient in iron». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#m1)

2) Not good enough; having weaknesses or faults: «deficient skills». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

In health and science lessons, a diet deficient in vitamin C can cause illness, and plants in poor soil can be deficient in nutrients. In formal reports «deficient» means below the needed standard. Phrases: «deficient in», «vitamin-deficient», «iron-deficient».

### examples

- Her diet was deficient in iron, so she felt tired. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x1)
- Sailors long ago got ill from food deficient in vitamin C. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x2)
- The soil is deficient in nitrogen, so the plants are yellow. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x3)
- The report found the old bridge was deficient and unsafe. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x4)
- He was deficient in sleep after the long trip. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x5)
- (formal) The candidate's answer was deficient in detail. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x6)
- The Russian peasant is by no means deficient in humor, a fact of which the Skazkas offer abundant evidence. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/#x7)

### note

Noun: «deficiency». Spelled with -cient. Do not confuse with «defective» (broken) or «deficit» (a shortfall of money or numbers). In maths, «deficient» means less than needed: if you need 10 and have 7, you are 3 short.

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «deficient» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/D/deficient/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.