English Reference
adjective · noun

missing

adj. · n.
US /ˈmɪsɪŋ/ UK /mˈɪsɪŋ/ miss·ing

  1. 01 A2 Elementary

    adj.used to describe something that you cannot find or that is gone.

    adj.describing an object or person that cannot be located or is absent from its expected position.

    Simple

    I spent all morning looking for my missing keys.

    In context

    The police launched a formal investigation after the teenager was reported missing by his parents late Sunday evening.

  2. 02 B1 Intermediate

    adj.not included in something, even though it should be there.

    adj.absent from a set, series, or whole where inclusion is expected or required.

    Simple

    There are a few pages missing from the middle of this book.

    In context

    The auditor noted that several critical signatures were missing from the final contract, rendering the document legally unenforceable.

  3. 03 C2 Proficiency Technical Technical

    adj.used to describe an engine that is not running smoothly.

    adj.referring to an internal combustion engine that fails to fire properly in one or more cylinders.

    Simple

    The old car was missing badly as we tried to drive up the steep hill.

    In context

    The mechanic identified a fouled spark plug as the primary reason the engine had been missing during acceleration.

    misfiring
  4. 04 C1 Advanced AcademicTechnical Computing

    n.a piece of information that is not there in a list or set of facts.

    n.a null or absent value within a dataset or statistical observation.

    Simple

    The software automatically highlights any missings in the spreadsheet.

    In context

    The researcher had to decide whether to exclude the participants with missings or to use an imputation method to fill the gaps.

    Usage

    Often used as a countable noun in statistical or data-processing contexts.


By surface analysis, miss + -ing.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level A2 · Elementary
Frequency Very common
Updated