Meaning & use
insufficiency
The state of not having enough of something needed, or a lack of adequate quality.
See it in a sentence
The doctor blamed her fatigue on an insufficiency of iron in her diet.
Heart insufficiency means the organ cannot pump blood as efficiently as it should.
A note on using this word
In medicine, insufficiency often describes an organ that functions poorly rather than one that fails completely.
Words with a similar meaning
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
sufficiencyabundance
Make it your own
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