as in shortage
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
a growing deficit in the number of hours devoted to sleep
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Recent Examples of deficit
Largely confirming what other economic models have predicted, the Congressional Budget Office's estimations show that the tradeoff for a $2.8 trillion deficit reduction over 10 years would be an overall reduction in household wealth.
—
Arkansas Online, 5 June 2025
Musk has focused most of his criticism on how the domestic policy bill would balloon the deficit.
—Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 5 June 2025
Charlotte clinched the series with a 3-2 win, rallying back from a 2-0 deficit with a pair of goals in the second period before Jesse Puljujarvi scored the game-winner with 2:04 left in regulation.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 4 June 2025
Wednesday’s analysis includes more than $174 billion in other deficit additions due to interactive effects of different parts of the legislation that previous estimates hadn’t accounted for.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for deficit
Arkansas Online, 5 June 2025
Musk has focused most of his criticism on how the domestic policy bill would balloon the deficit.
—Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 5 June 2025
Charlotte clinched the series with a 3-2 win, rallying back from a 2-0 deficit with a pair of goals in the second period before Jesse Puljujarvi scored the game-winner with 2:04 left in regulation.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 4 June 2025
Wednesday’s analysis includes more than $174 billion in other deficit additions due to interactive effects of different parts of the legislation that previous estimates hadn’t accounted for.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 4 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for deficit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deficit
Noun
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At the time Volkswagen was the first automaker to warn of a global chip shortage.—
Steve Banker,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2025
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Only Salt Lake City’s 99,000 shortage – 88 workers for 100 jobs – was wider.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
30 May 2025
Noun
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Most troubling is a lack of true concern or remedies for a huge problem for America, our national debt, and the service on that $36 trillion debt, which amounts to almost a trillion dollars a year.—
Gary Franks,
Hartford Courant,
6 June 2025
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Thomson maintains Luzardo’s issues are a lack of execution.—
Matt Gelb,
New York Times,
6 June 2025
Noun
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Key Takeaways Hair shedding or thinning can begin a few months after surgery due to stress, nutrient deficiencies, or both.—
Ashley Olivine,
Verywell Health,
28 May 2025
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Really, much of Hart’s time at Triple-A El Paso was spent attacking his deficiencies against right-handed hitters, who were hitting .333/.386/.698 against him in the majors compared to a .100/.100/.100 line in 20 plate appearances against lefties.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Deficit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deficit. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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