(a.) Not having an adequate supply or amount\; wanting, to make up completeness; wanting, as regards a requirement; not sufficient; inadequate; defective; imperfect; incomplete; lacking; as, deficient parts; deficient estate; deficient strength; deficient in judgment.

adulterated amiss arrested bad base blemished botched bungling callow clumsy damaged defective embryonic erroneous failing fallible faulty flawed found wanting half-assed haphazard hit-and-miss hit-or-miss hypoplastic immature impaired imperfect imprecise impure in arrear in arrears in default in short supply in want of inaccurate inadequate incompetent incomplete inexact infant inferior infrequent injured insufficient lacking little makeshift maladroit marred mean mediocre messy minus missing mixed needing not comparable not enough not in it not perfect off out of it part partial patchy petty promiscuous rare scant scanty scarce scrappy scrimpy shabby short short of shy sketchy skimpy slipshod slipshoddy sloppy slovenly sluttish small too little trivial uncommon underdeveloped undeveloped unequal to uneven unfinished unperfected unqualified unreached unsatisfactory unsatisfying unskillful unsound unsufficing unthorough untidy wanting