N. insufficiency,
inadequacy, inadequateness,
incompetence,
deficiency, imperfection,
shortcoming,
paucity,
stint,
scantiness, none to spare, bare subsistence,
scarcity,
dearth, want, need, lack, poverty,
exigency,
inanition,
starvation, famine,
drought,
dole,
mite,
pittance, short allowance, short commons, half rations, banyan day,
emptiness, poorness,
depletion,
vacancy,
flaccidity,
ebb tide, low water, "a beggarly account of empty boxes",
indigence,
insolvency V. be insufficient, not suffice, come short of run dry, want, lack, need, require,
caret, be in want, live from hand to mouth, render insufficient, drain of resources,
impoverish,
stint, put on short allowance, do insufficiently, scotch the snake
Adj. insufficient, inadequate, too little, not enough, unequal to, incompetent, "weighed in the balance and found wanting",
perfunctory, deficient, wanting,
&c. v, imperfect, ill-furnished, ill-provided, ill- stored, ill-off,
slack, at a low ebb, empty,
vacant, bare, short of, out of, destitute of, devoid of, bereft of, denuded of, dry, drained, unprovided, unsupplied, unfurnished,
unreplenished, unfed, unstored,
untreasured, empty-handed,
meager, poor, thin,
scrimp,
sparing,
spare,
stinted,
starved,
starving, halfstarved, famine-stricken,
famished,
jejune,
scant,
scarce, not to be had, not to be had for love or money, not to be had at any price,
scurvy,
stingy, at the end of one's tether, without resources, in want, in debt
Adv. insufficiently, in default of, for want of, failing
Phr. semper avarus eget
N. inutility, uselessness,
inefficacy,
futility,
ineptitude,
inaptitude, unsubservience,
inadequacy, inefficiency,
&c. (incompetence) 158,
unskillfulness, disservice, unfruitfulness &c.(unproductiveness), 169, labor in vain, labor lost, labor of sisyphus, lost trouble, lost labor, work of penelope, sleeveless errand, wild goose chase, mere farce,
tautology,
supererogation, vanitas vanitatum, vanity,
inanity,
worthlessness,
nugacity,
triviality, caput mortuum, waste paper, dead letter, blunt tool,
litter,
rubbish,
junk,
lumber, odds and ends, cast-off clothes, button top,
shoddy, rags,
orts,
trash, refuse,
sweepings, scourings, offscourings, waste,
rubble,
debris,
detritus,
stubble, leavings, broken meat,
dregs, weeds, tares, rubbish heap, dust hole, rudera, deads, fruges consumere natus
V. be useless, go a begging, fail, seek after impossibilities, strive after impossibilities, use vain efforts, labor in vain, roll the stone of sisyphus, beat the air, lash the waves, battre l'eau avec un baton, donner un coup d'epee dans l'eau, fish in the air, milk the ram, drop a bucket into an empty well, sow the sand, bay the moon, preach to the winds, speak to the winds, whistle jigs to a milestone, kick against the pricks, se battre contre des moulins, lock the stable door when the steed is stolen, lock the barn door after the horse is stolen, hold a farthing candle to the sun, cast pearls before swine, carry coals to newcastle, wash a blackamoor white, render useless,
dismantle, dismast, dismount,
disqualify, disable,
unrig,
cripple,
lame, spike guns, clip the wings, put out of gear
Adj. useless,
inutile,
inefficacious,
futile,
unavailing,
bootless,
inoperative, inadequate, inservient|, unsubservient,
inept, inefficient, of no avail,
ineffectual, incompetent, "stale, flat and unprofitable",
superfluous,
dispensable, thrown away,
abortive, worthless, valueless, priceless, unsalable, not worth a straw dear at any price, vain, empty,
inane, gainless, profitless, fruitless, unserviceable, unprofitable, ill-spent, unproductive,
hors de combat,
effete, past work, obsolete, fit for the dust hole, good for nothing, of no earthly use, not worth having, not worth powder and shot, leading to no end, uncalled for, unnecessary, unneeded
Adv. uselessly, to little purpose, to no purpose, to little or no purpose
Int. cui bono?, what's the good, phr, actum ne agas, chercher une aiguille dans une botte de foin, tanto buon che val niente
N. imperfection, imperfectness,
deficiency,
inadequacy,
peccancy,
immaturity, fault, defect, weak point, screw loose,
flaw,
gap, twist,
taint,
attainder, bar sinister, hole in one's coat,
blemish, weakness,
half blood,
shortcoming,
drawback, seamy side,
mediocrity, no great shakes, no great catch, not much to boast of, one-horse shay
V. be imperfect, have a defect, lie under a disadvantage, spring a leak, not pass muster, barely pass muster, fall short
Adj. imperfect, not perfect, deficient, defective,
faulty, unsound,
tainted, out of order, out of tune,
cracked,
leaky, sprung,
warped,
lame, injured,
peccant,
frail, inadequate, crude, incomplete, found wanting, below par, short- handed, below its full strength, under its full strength, below its full complement, indifferent, middling, ordinary,
mediocre, average,
so-so, coucicouci, milk and water,
tolerable, fair, passable, pretty well, pretty good, rather good, moderately good, good, good enough, well enough, adequate,
decent, not bad, not amiss, inobjectionable, unobjectionable,
admissible, bearable, only better than nothing, secondary, inferior,
second-rate, second-best,
one-horse Adv. almost &c, to a limited extent, rather, pretty, moderately, passing, only, considering, all things considered, enough
Phr. surgit amari aliquid
