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imperfect

[im-pur-fikt]

Example Sentences Origin

adjective

of, pertaining to, or characterized by defects or weaknesses: imperfect vision.

not perfect; lacking completeness: imperfect knowledge.

Grammar. noting action or state still in process at some temporal point of reference, particularly in the past.

Law. being without legal effect or support; unenforceable.

Botany. (of a flower) diclinous.

EXPAND

Music. of or relating to the interval of a major or minor third or sixth. Compare perfect (def. 12a).

COLLAPSE

noun Grammar.

the imperfect tense.

another verb formation or construction with imperfect meaning.

a form in the imperfect, as Latin portābam, “I was carrying.”

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Imperfect is always a great word to know.

So is tilde. Does it mean:

a symbol (∼) indicating equivalency or similarity between two values.

a dash one em long.

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Origin:
1300–50; < Latin imperfectus unfinished (see im-², perfect); replacing Middle English imparfit < Middle French imparfait < Latin, as above

Related forms

im·per·fect·ly, adverb

im·per·fect·ness, noun

Synonyms
1. defective, faulty. 2. incomplete, underdeveloped; immature.

Antonyms
2. complete, developed.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To imperfect

Example Sentences

The rankings give a sense of the relative quality of schools, imperfect as it may be.

Australia's plans for cutting carbon emissions are welcome, if imperfect.

Parsons says she wondered why the site contained so many imperfect points.

EXPAND

The rankings give a sense of the relative quality of schools, imperfect as it may be.

Australia's plans for cutting carbon emissions are welcome, if imperfect.

Parsons says she wondered why the site contained so many imperfect points.

They're arguing that a perfect machine would be imperfect.

History is a tissue of such tender episodes, if also an imperfect record of them.

Sitting atop the narrow shelf above the sink, imperfect teacups make good holders for air plants.

That's good, because anonymity remains essential in these imperfect times.

It's true, of course, that the parallels are imperfect.

To say it was imperfect though understates his error on that one.

Yet an imperfect system can also increase traffic congestion caused by circling for on-street parking.

It is true that atmospheric science is complex and climate models are imperfect.

Insurgent-initiated attacks are an imperfect measurement how the insurgency's doing.

Yes, this is an imperfect way of evaluating candidates.

Gliding distance is an imperfect measure of an airliner's aerodynamic efficiency, since it is not designed for gliding.

Imperfect weather forecasts cause construction companies to lose both time and money.

The problem with natural gas is that it is an imperfect solution.

All the pieces fit together, even the imperfect ones.

Religion, or science, have moral consequences and are practiced by imperfect moral beings who act in the world.

But share prices are also imperfect gauges of bank performance.

Scientists are particularly intrigued by imperfect mimicry, where one organism only vaguely resembles another.

But the research tools at scientists' disposal are highly imperfect.

The crack remains, and this kluge gives the bell its imperfect but distinctive tone.

It doesn't work nearly as well as our imperfect system.

The system is imperfect but cheap, and hard to defraud.

Moreover, an imperfect system is intrinsically destabilizing, because it encourages building and launching more weapons.

And though he is an imperfect and inexperienced child, he has the courage to risk himself to oppose evil whenever it appears.

Citation counts are imperfect measure of success but still useful.

Using this imperfect measure, migration has slowed dramatically.

What that means is that our present market is incomplete and imperfect.

We don't question the non-sequiturs or complain about the imperfect special effects or the shallow characters.

Tenure has proved to be an imperfect shield, notwithstanding what administrations profess to guarantee.

His macroeconomic stewardship was probably imperfect.

Save time and eliminate the imperfect freeze-drying.

Which makes it an imperfect screener for militants, at best.

Clinic workers confirm that women who have imperfect babies tend to blame doctors.

It's an imperfect world and it is terribly simplistic to says that plastics are bad.

In the real world the solution is to balance risks and minimise the issues with imperfect alternatives.

But imperfect memories alone, of course, do not guarantee anyone is always striving to be deception-free.

Judging others as somehow imperfect due to minor superficial differences is an imperfection.

The glitch is the requirement of conviction based on imperfect perceptions and incomplete knowledge.

Imperfect umpires are as much a part of baseball as fielders who muff a pop fly or runners who miss a base.

There are only thousands of variously imperfect postures, and various chairs that limit the destruction, more or less.

There is reason to believe that the report of new cases is imperfect.

Customizing shoes to fit oddly numbered toes helps patients adjust to their imperfect gait and quickly get back on their feet.

The strapless bra is an imperfect design, but today there's an avalanche of new products to help hold things in place.

But they are also being used to set policy on the basis of questionable data and imperfect methodologies.

Vertical integration solved the problem of imperfect information.

Every cellular network has its problems with voice quality, occasional dropped calls and imperfect data coverage.

It is perfect because it is wholly and forever imperfect.

So, as imperfect as it may be, it's a small part of our interview process but one that the committee pays attention to.

The market for chief executives is deplorably imperfect.

It's gonna take all these imperfect methods combined to replace our dismal array of fossil fuels.

The crack remains and this kluge gives the bell its imperfect but distinctive tone.

However imperfect in practice, deterring aggression and crimes against humanity must remain the primary goal.

The lesson here is that the ideal adviser may be a composite of various imperfect humans.

The problem is that every indicator of academic ability used by college admission officers is imperfect.

Fledgling pan-European political parties are imperfect vehicles for pushing forward debate, with or without foundations bolted on.

It is an imperfect guage of those questions, but it doesn't need to be perfect.

What matters is to know whether, in practice, imperfect markets work better than imperfect governments.

The world is an imperfect place and one big life decision does foreclose on many other opportunities.

Yet those risk managers are also aware that they are having to base their decisions on imperfect information.

Google translate could be used to translate all resume's, knowing that it's an imperfect translation.

It is true that patents have become less important in some industries and so they may be an imperfect proxy for all innovation.

The observed top-quark asymmetry is being compared to an imperfect surrogate for the true standard.

What people tell pollsters is an imperfect guide to what they think.

And students could evaluate that, even if in imperfect ways.

And yet, at the end of the day, this whole system relies on imperfect people.

Being a leader, even an imperfect one alongside many other fantastic women and men, is exhausting.

COLLAPSE

Collins

World English Dictionary

imperfect (ɪmˈpɜːfɪkt)

—*adj*
1.	exhibiting or characterized by faults, mistakes, etc; defective
2.	not complete or finished; deficient
3.	botany
	a. (of flowers) lacking functional stamens or pistils
	b. (of fungi) not undergoing sexual reproduction
4.	grammar denoting a tense of verbs used most commonly in describing continuous or repeated past actions or events, as for example was walking as opposed to walked
5.	law See also executory (of a trust, an obligation, etc) lacking some necessary formality to make effective or binding; incomplete; legally unenforceable
6.	music
	a. (of a cadence) proceeding to the dominant from the tonic, subdominant, or any chord other than the dominant
	b. Compare perfect of or relating to all intervals other than the fourth, fifth, and octave

—n
7.	grammar
	a. the imperfect tense
	b. a verb in this tense

im'perfectly

—*adv*

im'perfectness

—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source

Etymonline

Word Origin & History

imperfect

mid-14c., imperfite, from O.Fr. imparfait, from L. imperfectus "unfinished, incomplete." Replaced mid-16c. by the Latin form.

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"Gratitude is a burden upon our imperfect nature, and we are but too willing to ease ourselves of it, or at least to lighten it as much as we can."

-Philip Dormer Stanhope Chesterfield, 4th Earl

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