lack

[lak] / læk /

NOUN

deficiency, need

Synonyms

STRONGEST

absence dearth inadequacy loss paucity poverty reduction scarcity shortage shortcoming shortfall

STRONG

abridgement curtailment decrease default defect deficit depletion deprivation destitution distress exigency exiguity inferiority insufficiency meagerness miss necessity privation retrenchment scantiness shortness shrinkage shrinking slightness stint want

WEAK

insufficience

Antonyms

STRONGEST

abundance affluence enough excess plenty success sufficiency

STRONG

addition advantage enlargement expansion increase perfection

WEAK

extra lot plethora profusion surplus

VERB

do not have

Synonyms

STRONGEST

need require want

STRONG

minus miss out

WEAK

be deficient in be short of be without have need of hurting for not got too little too late

Antonyms

STRONGEST

dislike have

Usage

What are other ways to say lack? The verb lack means to be without or to have less than a desirable quantity of something: to lack courage, sufficient money, enough members to make a quorum. Need often suggests urgency, stressing the necessity of supplying what is lacking: to need an operation, better food, a match to light the fire. Require, which expresses necessity as strongly as need, occurs most frequently in serious or formal contexts: Your presence at the hearing is required. Successful experimentation requires careful attention to detail.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Mars, by contrast, lacks active tectonics, which helps explain why its river systems are fewer and generally smaller.

From Science Daily

An informal survey of my Vietnamese friends and family in the United States yielded a similar lack of recognition.

From Salon

Turns out he’s a modern-day Samson: his lack of hair was the reason he was such a soulless ghoul.

From Los Angeles Times

Fans have complained about the lack of a brand new Mario or Zelda game and, as things stand, neither has been announced yet.

From BBC

“I’m complex and I’m deep and I get hurt easily,” Mr. Chase says in explaining his sour disposition and, indirectly, utter lack of empathy.

From The Wall Street Journal

lack

Usage

Example Sentences

Related Words