inadequate
The word “inadequate” has 4 syllables: in-ad-e-quate
It's pronounced as /ɪnˈæ.də.kwət/
What is synonym and antonym for inadequate?
In the thesaurus, “inadequate” has 31 synonyms and 38 antonyms.
Here are synonyms and antonyms for inadequate along with examples of usage in sentences.
Synonyms for inadequate
- bare
- deficient
- hand-to-mouth
- insufficient
- lacking
- lean
- light
- low
- meager
- meagre
- mere
- minimum
- poor
- scant
- scanty
- scarce
- short
- shy
- skimp
- skimpy
- slender
- slight
- slim
- small
- spare
- sparse
- stingy
- substandard
- unacceptable
- unsatisfactory
- wanting
Antonyms for inadequate
- abounding
- abundant
- adequate
- ample
- big
- bounteous
- bountiful
- considerable
- copious
- enlarged
- enough
- expanded
- generous
- hefty
- jumbo
- king-size
- king-sized
- large
- largish
- lavish
- liberal
- luxuriant
- overflowing
- oversize
- oversized
- plenitudinous
- plenteous
- plentiful
- rich
- satisfactory
- sizable
- sizeable
- substantial
- sufficient
- super
- supplemented
- teeming
- tolerable
Meanings of inadequate
- noun
- An individual who is inadequate.
- adjective
- Not adequate; not fit for the purpose.
Example Sentences
- The shelter was inadequate for the number of people who needed help.
- His explanation was inadequate and left many questions unanswered.
- They received inadequate funding to complete the project.
- The safety measures were found to be inadequate during the inspection.
- She felt inadequate compared to her more experienced colleagues.
On this page you'll find 69 synonyms, antonyms, or another words to inadequate, such as: abounding, abundant, adequate, ample, bare, big, bounteous.
Make sure to choose synonyms and antonyms that are appropriate for the context of the sentence.
Related Words
lacking
- absent
- asking
- bare
- bearing
- begging
- challenging
- claiming
- coming up short
- commanding
- dead
- defective
- deficient
- defunct
- demanding
- departed
- deprived of
- done
- enjoining
- entailing
- exacting
- expired
- extinct
- finished
- flawed
- hand-to-mouth
- impaired
- inadequate
- incomplete
- insisting
- insufficient
- involving
- lapsed
- lean
- light
- lost
- low
- meager
- meagre
- mere
- minimum
- minus
- missing
- necessitating
- needed
- needing
- niggardly
- nonexistent
- not hacking it
- not making it
- obsolete
- over
- perished
- poor
- pressing
- questing
- rare
- requiring
- sans
- scant
- scanty
- scarce
- short
- shy
- skimp
- skimpy
- slender
- slight
- slim
- small
- spare
- sparse
- stingy
- stipulating
- substandard
- taking
- unacceptable
- uncommon
- unsatisfactory
- vanished
- wanting
- warranting
- without
racked
- afflicted
- aggravated
- agitated
- agonized
- ailing
- anguished
- annoyed
- appalling
- assailed
- attacked
- awful
- bad
- badgered
- battered
- bedeviled
- beset
- besieged
- beyond doubt
- bothered
- brokenhearted
- bruised
- bugged
- calamitous
- catastrophic
- chafed
- cinched
- clear-cut
- clinched
- confirmed
- crestfallen
- crippled
- cruel
- crushed
- cursed
- damaged
- decided
- definite
- dejected
- deplorable
- depressed
- desolate
- despairing
- despondent
- destroyed
- disappointing
- disastrous
- discomforted
- discomposed
- disconsolate
- discontented
- disgraceful
- disquieted
- distressed
- distressing
- disturbed
- dogged
- doleful
- dolorous
- down
- down in the mouth
- downcast
- dreadful
- exasperated
- excruciated
- feeble
- flustered
- forlorn
- frayed
- galled
- gloomy
- got
- grated
- grieved
- grieving
- grievous
- grim
- griped
- guaranteed
- hagrode
- harassed
- harmed
- harried
- harrowed
- heartbreaking
- heartbroken
- heartrending
- heartsick
- hopeless
- hounded
- hurt
- hurting
- ill
- impaired
- in pain
- in the bag
- inadequate
- indubitable
- injured
- irked
- irrefutable
- irritated
- lamed
- lamentable
- lousy
- made certain
- mangled
- martyred
- mean
- melancholy
- miserable
- molested
- mournful
- mutilated
- nailed down
- nettled
- not happy
- on a downer
- on ice
- oppressed
- overpowered
- overwhelmed
- pained
- paltry
- panged
- pathetic
- peeved
- persecuted
- perturbed
- pestered
- piqued
- piteous
- pitiable
- pitiful
- plagued
- plaintive
- poor
- positive
- pricked
- pronounced
- pulled
- pursued
- put out
- rasped
- rid
- riled
- rode
- rotten
- rueful
- ruthful
- sad
- sealed
- secure
- set
- settled
- sewed-up
- shocking
- sick
- sickly
- smarted
- smote
- sorrowful
- sorry
- stabbed
- strained
- stressed
- stretched
- struck
- stung
- suffering
- sure
- surefire
- taxed
- tore
- tormented
- tortured
- tragic
- tried
- troubled
- tyrannized
- undoubted
- unfortunate
- unhappy
- unquestionable
- upset
- vexed
- vext
- victimized
- weakened
- woebegone
- worried
- wounded
- wrenched
- wretched
- wrung
sad
- abhorrent
- abominable
- affecting
- aggrieved
- agonized
- anguished
- bad
- beastly
- bereaved
- bitter
- black
- bleak
- blue
- brokenhearted
- calamitous
- cast down
- cheerless
- comfortless
- contemptible
- crestfallen
- dark
- darkening
- dejected
- deplorable
- depressed
- depressing
- desolate
- despairing
- despicable
- despondent
- detestable
- disappointed
- disastrous
- discomforting
- discomposing
- disconsolate
- discouraged
- discouraging
- discreditable
- disgraceful
- disgusting
- disheartened
- disheartening
- dishonorable
- dismal
- dispirited
- dispiriting
- disquieting
- disreputable
- distressed
- distressful
- distressing
- disturbing
- doleful
- dolorous
- down
- down in dumps
- down in the mouth
- downcast
- downhearted
- drear
- dreary
- droopy
- elegiac
- elegiacal
- forlorn
- funereal
- gloomy
- glum
- grave
- gray
- grey
- grief-stricken
- grieved
- grieving
- grievous
- hangdog
- hapless
- hateful
- heart-rending
- heartbreaking
- heartbroken
- heartrending
- heartsick
- heartsore
- heavy-hearted
- heavyhearted
- hopeless
- hurting
- ignominious
- in doldrums
- in grief
- in the dumps
- inadequate
- inconsolable
- infamous
- inferior
- joyless
- lachrymose
- lame
- lamentable
- languishing
- lousy
- low
- low-grade
- low-quality
- low-spirited
- lugubrious
- melancholic
- melancholy
- meritless
- misbegotten
- miserable
- morbid
- morose
- mournful
- moving
- murky
- notorious
- odious
- oppressive
- out of sorts
- pathetic
- pensive
- perturbing
- pessimistic
- piteous
- pitiable
- pitiful
- plaintive
- poignant
- poor
- regretful
- regrettable
- rueful
- saddened
- saddening
- saturnine
- scandalous
- second-class
- serious
- shabby
- shameful
- shocking
- shoddy
- sick at heart
- somber
- sombre
- sordid
- sorrowful
- sorry
- stinking
- suicidal
- sullen
- sunk
- tear-jerking
- tearful
- teary
- touching
- tragic
- troubled
- uneasy
- unfortunate
- unhappy
- unquiet
- unsatisfactory
- unsavory
- unworthy
- upset
- upsetting
- wailing
- weeping
- wistful
- woebegone
- woeful
- worried
- worthless
- wretched
unable
- amateurish
- callow
- clumsy
- dilettantish
- disqualified
- green
- helpless
- hog-tied
- impotent
- impuissant
- inadequate
- inapt
- incapable
- incapacitated
- incompetent
- ineffective
- ineffectual
- inefficacious
- inefficient
- ineligible
- inept
- inexperienced
- inexpert
- inoperative
- no can do
- no good
- not able
- not cut out for
- not equal to
- not up to
- out of commission
- powerless
- raw
- sidelined
- unequipped
- unfit
- unfitted
- unprepared
- unprofessional
- unqualified
- unskilled
- unskillful
- untrained
- useless
- wanting
- weak
- worthless
vain
- abortive
- arrogant
- assumptive
- assured
- bad
- barren
- base
- big-headed
- biggety
- biggity
- bigheaded
- blusterous
- blustery
- boastful
- bombastic
- bootless
- braggart
- bragging
- braggy
- bumptious
- cavalier
- chaffy
- cheap
- cheapjack
- chesty
- cocky
- complacent
- conceited
- condescending
- confident
- consequential
- counterproductive
- defective
- deficient
- delusive
- delusory
- disdainful
- domineering
- dud
- duff
- egocentric
- egoistic
- egoistical
- egotistic
- egotistical
- empty
- fastuous
- flawed
- frivolous
- fruitless
- futile
- going nowhere
- haughty
- hifalutin
- high-and-mighty
- high-handed
- high-hat
- highfalutin
- holier-than-thou
- hollow
- hopeless
- huffy
- idle
- imperfect
- imperious
- important
- impossible
- in vain
- in vicious circle
- inadequate
- ineffective
- ineffectual
- inefficacious
- inferior
- inflated
- insignificant
- insufficient
- junky
- lacking
- lofty
- lordly
- lost
- lousy
- low-grade
- masterful
- meaningless
- misleading
- narcissistic
- no dice
- no-good
- no-win
- not a prayer
- not worth the candle
- nugatory
- null
- of no avail
- on a treadmill
- ostentatious
- otiose
- overconfident
- overweening
- paltry
- patronizing
- peremptory
- petty
- pleased with oneself
- pointless
- pompous
- pontifical
- presuming
- presumptuous
- pretentious
- prideful
- profitless
- proud
- puffed up
- puny
- second-rate
- self-adulatory
- self-affected
- self-applauding
- self-asserting
- self-assertive
- self-assured
- self-centered
- self-conceited
- self-confident
- self-congratulatory
- self-contented
- self-dramatizing
- self-engrossed
- self-glorifying
- self-gratulatory
- self-important
- self-opinionated
- self-promoting
- self-satisfied
- selfish
- senseless
- shuck
- slight
- smug
- snobbish
- snobby
- snooty
- sterile
- stuck-up
- substandard
- supercilious
- superior
- swaggering
- swellheaded
- swollen-headed
- time-wasting
- toploftical
- toplofty
- trifling
- trivial
- unacceptable
- unattainable
- unavailing
- unimportant
- unnotable
- unproductive
- unprofitable
- unsatisfactory
- unsuccessful
- uppish
- uppity
- useless
- vainglorious
- valueless
- void
- wanting
- worthless