lack

/læk/ (bre, ipa) · /læk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈlak/ (ame, mw)

lack — noun

1. the situation when something that is needed or expected is absent or available o

1.名詞B1
釋義

the situation when something that is needed or expected is absent or available only in a smaller amount than required — for example, a region suffering from a lack of rain, or a team losing because of a lack of preparation.

例句

The project failed due to a lack of funding from investors.

collocation: due to a lack of [resource]

Many children in rural Kenya suffer from a lack of clean drinking water.

collocation: suffer from a lack of [something]

同義詞
  • shortage

    more concrete; used when there is a measurable, often smaller amount than needed (e.g. food shortage, staff shortage)

  • absence

    stronger — implies something is completely missing rather than just insufficient

  • deficiency

    more formal; often used in medical or technical contexts

反義詞
  • abundance

    a large quantity of something, more than enough

  • plenty

    as much or more than needed; less formal than 'abundance'

文法句型

a/the lack of [something]

for lack of [something]

no lack of [something]

用法筆記

Always followed by 'of' when describing what is missing. The phrase 'for lack of' means 'because there is not enough of' and often appears in formal or written English.

常見錯誤

❌There is a lack water in the village.
✅There is a lack of water in the village.
💡'lack' as a noun always requires 'of' before the thing that is missing.
❌We have lack of time.
✅We have a lack of time.
💡the noun 'lack' needs the article 'a' when it precedes 'of + noun'.

lack — verb