Defect Meaning
/ˈdiːfɛkt/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA fault or malfunction.
nounThe quantity or amount by which anything falls short.
Sentence Examples
To be perfect she lacked just one defect.
For nothing is so beautiful but that it betrays some defect on close inspection.
The technician discovered a minor defect in the new machine's motor.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The quality control inspector discovered a tiny ____ in the newly manufactured ceramic vase.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
To be perfect she lacked just one ____.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *de Proto-Indo-European *-h₁ Proto-Indo-European *déh₁ Proto-Italic *dē Latin dē Latin de- Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₁k- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *dʰh₁kyéti Proto-Italic *θakjō Proto-Italic *fakjō Latin facio Latin dēficiō Proto-Indo-European *-tus Proto-Italic *-tus Latin -tus Latin dēfectusbor. English defect Borrowed from Latin defectus (“a failure, lack”), from deficere (“to fail, lack, literally 'undo'”), from past participle defectus, from de- (“of, from”) + facere (“to do”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Among boys little tenderness is shown to personal defects."
— 1856 February, [Thomas Babington] Macaulay, “Oliver Goldsmith”, in T[homas] F[lower] E[llis], editor, The Miscellaneous Writings and Speeches of Lord Macaulay, new edition, London: Longman, Green, Reader, & Dyer, published 1871, →OCLC:
"But ever since the concept of "hamartia" recurred through Aristotle's Poetics, in an attempt to describe man's ingrained iniquity, our impulse has been to identify a telling defect in those brought suddenly and dramatically low."
— 2014 October 21, Oliver Brown, “Oscar Pistorius jailed for five years – sport afforded no protection against his tragic fallibilities”, in The Daily Telegraph (Sport):
"Another major defect of the current literature dealing with the nomenclature of hybrid forms of English is the scant attention paid to the question of frequency."
— 2018, James Lambert, “A multitude of ‘lishes’: The nomenclature of hybridity”, in English World-Wide, page 4:
"and the indefatigable application with which they have supplied the defects of early culture."
— 1824, Lydia Sigourney, Sketch of Connecticut:
"Capitalizing on the restive mood, Mr. Farage, the U.K. Independence Party leader, took out an advertisement in The Daily Telegraph this week inviting unhappy Tories to defect. In it Mr. Farage sniped that the Cameron government — made up disproportionately of career politicians who graduated from Eton and Oxbridge — was “run by a bunch of college kids, none of whom have ever had a proper job in their lives.”"
— 2013 May 23, Sarah Lyall, “British Leader’s Liberal Turn Sets Off a Rebellion in His Party”, in New York Times, retrieved 29 May 2013:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The quality control inspector discovered a tiny ____ in the newly manufactured ceramic vase.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
To be perfect she lacked just one ____.