deficiency meaning and definition

DEFICIENCY noun

Definition of deficiency (noun)

1. the state of needing something that is absent or unavailable
   • "there is a serious lack of insight into the problem"; "water is the critical deficiency in desert regions"; "for want of a nail the shoe was lost"
   • synonyms: lack, want
2. lack of an adequate quantity or number
   • "the inadequacy of unemployment benefits"
   • synonyms: inadequacy, insufficiency
   • antonym: adequacy