Inefficient — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

not producing desired results; wasteful

lacking the ability or skill to perform effectively; inadequate

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/ɪnɪfˈɪʃənt/

🇬🇧British English

/ɪnɪfˈɪʃənt/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ɪnɪfˈɪʃənt/

4 syllables Say it as /ɪnɪfˈɪʃənt/.

Examples

an inefficient campaign against drugs
outdated and inefficient design and methods
an ineffective administration

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

ineffective

Antonyms

efficient

Parts of Speech

adjective	not producing desired results; wasteful “an inefficient campaign against drugs”
adjective	lacking the ability or skill to perform effectively; inadequate “an ineffective administration”

Word Forms

inefficiency	noun	unskillfulness resulting from a lack of efficiency
ineffectiveness	noun	lacking the power to be effective

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

ineffizient

nicht die gewünschten Ergebnisse erzielen; verschwenderisch

🇫🇷French

inefficace

ne produit pas les résultats souhaités ; gaspilleur

🇪🇸Spanish

ineficiente

no producir los resultados deseados; antieconómico

🇮🇹Italian

inefficiente

non produrre i risultati desiderati; dispendioso

🇳🇱Dutch

inefficiënt

geen gewenste resultaten opleveren; verkwistend

🇵🇹Portuguese

ineficiente

não produzindo os resultados desejados; desperdício

🇷🇺Russian

неэффективный

не приносящие желаемых результатов; расточительный

India

🇮🇳Hindi

अप्रभावी

वांछित परिणाम नहीं दे रहा; अपव्ययी

🇧🇩Bengali

অদক্ষ

পছন্দসই ফলাফল উত্পাদন না; অপচয়কারী

🇮🇳Tamil

திறனற்ற

விரும்பிய முடிவுகளை உருவாக்கவில்லை; வீண்

🇮🇳Telugu

అసమర్థమైనది

ఆశించిన ఫలితాలను అందించడం లేదు; వ్యర్థమైన

🇮🇳Marathi

अकार्यक्षम

इच्छित परिणाम देत नाही; व्यर्थ

🇮🇳Gujarati

બિનકાર્યક્ષમ

ઇચ્છિત પરિણામો ઉત્પન્ન કરતા નથી; નકામા

🇮🇳Kannada

ಅಸಮರ್ಥ

ಅಪೇಕ್ಷಿತ ಫಲಿತಾಂಶಗಳನ್ನು ನೀಡುವುದಿಲ್ಲ; ವ್ಯರ್ಥ

🇮🇳Malayalam

കാര്യക്ഷമതയില്ലാത്ത

ആവശ്യമുള്ള ഫലങ്ങൾ ഉണ്ടാക്കുന്നില്ല; പാഴായത്

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਅਕੁਸ਼ਲ

ਲੋੜੀਂਦੇ ਨਤੀਜੇ ਨਹੀਂ ਪੈਦਾ ਕਰਨਾ; ਫਾਲਤੂ

🇵🇰Urdu

ناکارہ

مطلوبہ نتائج پیدا نہ کرنا؛ فضول

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

效率低下

没有产生预期的结果；浪费的

🇯🇵Japanese

非効率な

望ましい結果が得られない。無駄な

🇰🇷Korean

무능한

원하는 결과가 나오지 않습니다. 낭비적인

🇻🇳Vietnamese

không hiệu quả

không tạo ra kết quả mong muốn; lãng phí

🇹🇭Thai

ไม่มีประสิทธิภาพ

ไม่ให้ผลลัพธ์ที่ต้องการ สิ้นเปลือง

🇮🇩Indonesian

tidak efisien

tidak memberikan hasil yang diinginkan; boros

🇵🇭Filipino

hindi mabisa

hindi gumagawa ng ninanais na mga resulta; aksayado

🇲🇾Malay

tidak cekap

tidak menghasilkan hasil yang diingini; membazir

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

غير فعال

عدم تحقيق النتائج المرجوة؛ مسرف

🇮🇷Persian

ناکارآمد

عدم ایجاد نتایج مطلوب؛ اسراف کننده

🇹🇷Turkish

verimsiz

istenilen sonuçların elde edilememesi; savurgan

🇮🇱Hebrew

לֹא יָעִיל

לא לייצר תוצאות רצויות; בַּזבְּזָנִי

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'inefficient'?

The primary meaning of 'inefficient' is 'not producing desired results; wasteful'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'inefficient' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'inefficient' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'inefficient' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'inefficient' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'inefficient' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'inefficient' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'inefficient' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'inefficient' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'inefficient' in a professional email?

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Somewhat likely

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Never

Would you classify 'inefficient' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

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