Meaning

5 senses
  1. (stative, transitive)To be without, not to have, to need, to require.

    My life lacks excitement.

    mangeln, fehlen, entbehren

    отсу́тствоватьotsútstvovatʹ, недостава́тьnedostavátʹ, недоста́тьnedostátʹ

    бракува́тиbrakuváty

    be without

  2. (intransitive)To be short (of or for something).

    He'll never lack for company while he's got all that money.

  3. To be off one's guard.

    His opps caught him lacking.

  4. (intransitive, obsolete)To be in want.

  5. (obsolete)To see the deficiency in (someone or something); to find fault with, to malign, reproach.

Examples

975 sentences
  1. He died from lack of oxygen.

    Він помер від браку кисня.

    ruОн умер от недостатка кислорода.

    deEr starb aus Mangel an Sauerstoff.

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  2. Tom died from lack of oxygen.

    Том помер від браку кисню.

    ruТом умер от недостатка кислорода.

    deTom starb an Sauerstoffmangel.

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  3. Lack of sleep began to tell on me.

    Нестача сну починає даватися взнаки.

    ruНедостаток сна стал сказываться на мне.

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  4. Tom doesn't lack courage.

    Тому не бракує мужності.

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  5. He is lacking in common sense.

    Йому не вистачає здорового глузду.

    ruЕму не хватает здравого смысла.

    deIhm fehlt der gesunde Menschenverstand.

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Translations

9 languages
Українська
By meaning 1
be without, need, require:
Русский
By meaning 1
be without, need, require:
Deutsch
By meaning 1
be without, need, require:

Origin

From Middle English lacken, lakken, laken, from Old English læccian, *lacian (“to blame, c

From Middle English lacken, lakken, laken, from Old English læccian, *lacian (“to blame, criticise, lack”), from Proto-West Germanic *lak(k)ōn (“to blame, be lacking”), from Proto-Germanic *lak(k)ōną (“to reproach, blame, be lacking”), from Proto-Indo-European *lok-néh₂-. Cognate with Old Frisian lakia, lekia (“to contest, blame”), Middle Low German lacken, laken (“to reproach, blame, criticise”), Middle Dutch laken (“to disapprove, blame, lack”), Dutch laken (“to blame, reproach”).

Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

Forms

lacks, lacking, lacked, lacked
Base formlack · to lack
3rd person singularlacks
Present participlelacking
Past simplelacked
Past participlelacked

regular · Lesson

Present simpleLesson

I, you, we, theylack
he, she, itlacks

Past simpleLesson

all personslacked

Present perfectLesson

I, you, we, theyhave lacked
he, she, ithas lacked

Future simple (will)Lesson

all personswill lack

Synonyms

1 synonyms
Close in meaning

Antonyms

1 antonyms

Word family

17 related words

Collocations

12 patterns
  • lack of sleep
  • the lack of
  • lacks common sense
  • due to lack
  • lacked confidence
  • his lack of
  • lack of money
  • a lack of
  • from lack of
  • to lack of
  • lacks common
  • is lacking in

See also

neighbours in the dictionary
lack — meaning, examples, forms, synonyms | Krumeto