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imperfect

Syllabification: (im·per·fect)
Pronunciation: /imˈpərfikt/

Translate imperfect | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of imperfect

adjective

  • 1not perfect; faulty or incomplete:an imperfect grasp of English
  • 2 Grammar (of a tense) denoting a past action in progress but not completed at the time in question.
  • 3 Music (of a cadence) ending on the dominant chord.
  • 4 Law (of a gift, title, etc.) transferred without all the necessary conditions or requirements being met.

noun

(the imperfect) Grammar
  • the imperfect tense.

Derivatives

imperfectly

adverb

Origin:

Middle English imparfit, imperfet, from Old French imparfait, from Latin imperfectus, from in- 'not' + perfectus (see perfect). The spelling change in the 16th century was due to association with the Latin form

imperfect in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of imperfect in the British & World English dictionary

Nearby words

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