Imperfect

Imperfect
Imperfect Im*per"fect, a. [L. imperfectus: pref. im- not + perfectus perfect: cf. F imparfait, whence OE. imparfit. See {Perfect}.] 1. Not perfect; not complete in all its parts; wanting a part; deective; deficient. [1913 Webster]

Something he left imperfect in the state. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

Why, then, your other senses grow imperfect. --Shak. [1913 Webster]

2. Wanting in some elementary organ that is essential to successful or normal activity. [1913 Webster]

He . . . stammered like a child, or an amazed, imperfect person. --Jer. Taylor. [1913 Webster]

3. Not fulfilling its design; not realizing an ideal; not conformed to a standard or rule; not satisfying the taste or conscience; esthetically or morally defective. [1913 Webster]

Nothing imperfect or deficient left Of all that he created. --Milton. [1913 Webster]

Then say not man's imperfect, Heaven in fault; Say rather, man's as perfect as he ought. --Pope. [1913 Webster]

{Imperfect arch}, an arch of less than a semicircle; a skew arch.

{Imperfect cadence} (Mus.), one not ending with the tonic, but with the dominant or some other chord; one not giving complete rest; a half close.

{Imperfect consonances} (Mus.), chords like the third and sixth, whose ratios are less simple than those of the fifth and forth.

{Imperfect flower} (Bot.), a flower wanting either stamens or pistils. --Gray.

{Imperfect interval} (Mus.), one a semitone less than perfect; as, an imperfect fifth.

{Imperfect number} (Math.), a number either greater or less than the sum of its several divisors; in the former case, it is called also a {defective number}; in the latter, an {abundant number}.

{Imperfect obligations} (Law), obligations as of charity or gratitude, which cannot be enforced by law.

{Imperfect power} (Math.), a number which can not be produced by taking any whole number or vulgar fraction, as a factor, the number of times indicated by the power; thus, 9 is a perfect square, but an imperfect cube.

{Imperfect tense} (Gram.), a tense expressing past time and incomplete action. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • imperfect — IMPERFÉCT, Ă, imperfecţi, te, adj. (Adesea adverbial) Lipsit de perfecţiune; cu defecte, cu lipsuri. ♢ Timp imperfect (şi substantivat, n.) = timp verbal care aparţine modului indicativ şi care exprimă o acţiune din trecut, neterminată în… …   Dicționar Român

  • imperfect — im·per·fect adj: not perfect or complete: as a: not enforceable: enforceable only under certain conditions an imperfect obligation b: lacking an element otherwise required by law compare perfect Merriam Webster’s Dictionary of Law. Merriam …   Law dictionary

  • imperfect — im‧per‧fect [ɪmˈpɜːfɪkt ǁ ɜːr ] adjective 1. MANUFACTURING imperfect goods, products etc have not been made completely correctly: • Years ago, manufacturers used shopping malls to unload imperfect goods. 2. ECONOMICS used to describe markets or… …   Financial and business terms

  • Imperfect — Im*per fect ([i^]m*p[ e]r f[e^]kt), n. (Gram.) The imperfect tense; or the form of a verb denoting the imperfect tense. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • imperfect — [im pʉr′fikt] adj. [ME inperfit < OFr imparfit < L imperfectus: see IN 2 & PERFECT] 1. not finished or complete; lacking in something 2. not perfect; having a defect, fault, or error 3. Gram. in certain inflected languages, designating or… …   English World dictionary

  • Imperfect — Im*per fect, v. t. To make imperfect. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • imperfect us — index defective, executory, imperfect Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • imperfect — англ. [импэ/фикт] imperfetto ит. [импэрфэ/тто] несовершенный (каданс) …   Словарь иностранных музыкальных терминов

  • imperfect — (adj.) mid 14c., imperfite, from O.Fr. imparfait, from L. imperfectus unfinished, incomplete, from assimilated form of in not, opposite of (see IN (Cf. in ) (1)) + perfectus (see PERFECT (Cf. perfect)). Replaced mid 16c. by the Latin form.… …   Etymology dictionary

  • imperfect — [adj] flawed amiss, below par, bottom of barrel*, broken, damaged, defective, deficient, disfigured, dud*, faulty, few bugs*, garbage*, immature, impaired, incomplete, inexact, injured, junk*, lemon*, limited, low, marred, minus, partial, patchy …   New thesaurus

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