inadequately
adverb
Simple meaning
Not done well enough for a particular purpose.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
ihnaduhkwuhtleeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɪˈnædəkwətli
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adverb
In an inadequate manner or to an inadequate degree
“The temporary camps were inadequately equipped.”
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Rare
- Typical Use
- Primarily written
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
This meaning: In an inadequate manner or to an inadequate degree
Used this way, inadequately is a common word with a clearly unfavourable pull. It criticises, but without shouting.
“The temporary camps were inadequately equipped.”
- Emotional tone
- Negative
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Serious and weighty
- Usage feel
- Critical but measured
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use inadequately
- “The temporary camps were inadequately equipped.”adverb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Lacking the requisite qualities or resources to meet a task.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.