What does "defective" mean?

1. (broken or faulty) having a fault or a problem that stops something from working correctly. 2. (missing grammatical forms) describing a word that does not have all the usual forms, like a verb that has no past tense. 3. (a faulty item) an object that has a flaw or does not work as it should. 4. (incomplete writing system) describing a way of writing that does not show all the sounds of a language.

How do you use "defective"?

In linguistics, this adjective typically modifies nouns like 'verb', 'noun', or 'paradigm'.

defective

adj. · n.

US //dɪˈfɛktɪv// UK //dɪfˈɛktɪv// de·fec·tive

1 broken or faulty (adj.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

having a fault or a problem that stops something from working correctly.

having one or more flaws; imperfect in form, structure, or function.

Example

I had to return the toaster because it was defective and wouldn't heat up.

Example

The company issued a massive recall after discovering that a defective valve in the engine could lead to sudden power loss.
2 missing grammatical forms (adj.)
C1 Advanced Technical Academic Science

describing a word that does not have all the usual forms, like a verb that has no past tense.

lacking a full paradigm of inflected forms; for example, a verb that cannot be conjugated in all tenses or persons.

Example

The verb 'must' is defective because it does not have a past tense form.

Example

Modal verbs in English are considered defective since they lack infinitive forms and do not take the third-person singular suffix.

Usage

In linguistics, this adjective typically modifies nouns like 'verb', 'noun', or 'paradigm'.
- incomplete

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3 a faulty item (n.)
C2 Proficiency Formal Technical

an object that has a flaw or does not work as it should.

a person or thing categorized as having a defect; in modern usage, this often refers to manufactured goods in a quality control context.

Example

The factory worker removed the defectives from the assembly line before they were packed.

Example

The inspector was tasked with identifying any defectives in the batch of precision lenses before they were shipped to the laboratory.
- reject
- failure
4 incomplete writing system (adj.)
C2 Proficiency Technical Academic Science

describing a way of writing that does not show all the sounds of a language.

referring to a script or spelling system that lacks the means to represent all phonemic distinctions, such as vowels.

Example

Some ancient scripts used a defective spelling system that didn't include vowels.

Example

The scholar noted that the defective orthography of the inscription made it difficult to determine the exact pronunciation of the royal names.
- plene

Origin

From Middle English defectif, defective, from Old French defectif, from Late Latin dēfectīvus.