Lacking

How to spell lacking

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce lacking

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does lacking mean?

1. adjectiveMissing, in short supply, or not meeting an expected standard.
2. verbBeing without something that is needed or wanted.

Lacking in a sentence

• adjective

  The proposal was lacking in detail and had to be revised.

• verb

  Lacking the funds to expand, the company delayed its plans.

• adjective

  Experienced staff were lacking during the busy holiday period.

• verb

  Lacking a clear deadline, the team drifted from one task to another.

Where does lacking come from?

Language of origin: Dutch

The base word 'lack' arrived in English in the 1200s, most likely from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German 'lak', meaning a deficiency, fault, or blemish, and related forms across the early Germanic languages all carried the sense of something being missing or wanting. The verb 'to lack', meaning to be without something needed, grew naturally from that noun. Adding the familiar present-participle ending '-ing' produced 'lacking', which works both as the ongoing form of the verb and as an adjective describing something deficient or absent. The spelling is reassuringly regular: a single 'l', a single 'c' and 'k' before the ending, with no silent letters or doubled consonants to trip the writer.

How the word is built

• lack (to be without)
• -ing (participle/adjective suffix)