different between scant vs inadequate

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /skænt/
• Rhymes: -ænt

Etymology 1

From Middle English scant, from Old Norse skamt, neuter of skammr (“short”), from Proto-Germanic *skammaz (“short”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)?em- (“mutilated, hornless”).

Adjective

scant (comparative scanter, superlative scantest)

1. Very little, very few.
2. Not full, large, or plentiful; scarcely sufficient; scanty; meager; not enough.
   • 1824, John Watkins, Life of Hugh Latimer

     His sermon was scant, in all, a quarter of an hour.

3. Sparing; parsimonious; chary.

Synonyms

• (very little, few): few, little, slight
• (rare, scarce): geason; see also Thesaurus:rare

Antonyms

• (very little, few): ample, plenty

Derived terms

• scanty

Related terms

• scantily

Translations

Etymology 2

From Middle English scanten, from the adjective (see above).

Verb

scant (third-person singular simple present scants, present participle scanting, simple past and past participle scanted)

1. (transitive) To limit in amount or share; to stint.
   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Building

     where man hath a great living laid together and where he is scanted

   • 1625, Francis Bacon, Of Building

     I am scanted in the pleasure of dwelling on your actions.

2. (intransitive) To fail, or become less; to scantle.

Etymology 3

From Middle English scant, from the adjective (see above).

Noun

scant (plural scants)

1. (masonry) A block of stone sawn on two sides down to the bed level.
2. (masonry) A sheet of stone.
3. (wood) A slightly thinner measurement of a standard wood size.

Quotations

• For quotations using this term, see Citations:scant.

Etymology 4

From Middle English scant, from the adjective (see above).

Adverb

scant (not comparable)

1. With difficulty; scarcely; hardly.

   • So weak that he was scant able to go down the stairs.

   • 1597, Francis Bacon, Of the Colours of Good and Evil

     the Epicure , that will scant endure the Stoic to be in sight of him

Noun

scant

1. Scarcity; lack.

Anagrams

• can'st, canst, cants, casn't

English

Alternative forms

• inadæquate (archaic)

Etymology

in- +? adequate

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?n?æd?kw?t/
• Hyphenation: in?ad?e?quate

Adjective

inadequate (comparative more inadequate, superlative most inadequate)

1. Not adequate; not fit for the purpose

   Synonyms: insufficient, deficient; see also Thesaurus:inadequate

   • 2013 June 18, Simon Romero, "Protests Widen as Brazilians Chide Leaders," New York Times (retrieved 21 June 2013):

     In a convulsion that has caught many in Brazil and beyond by surprise, waves of protesters denounced their leaders for dedicating so many resources to cultivating Brazil’s global image by building stadiums for international events, when basic services like education and health care remain woefully inadequate.

Translations

Noun

inadequate (plural inadequates)

1. An individual who is inadequate.
   • 2012, Norman T. Feather, The Psychological Impact of Unemployment

     Thus, at some critical level of unemployment, “the unemployed” becomes a negative reference group of inadequates, the hardcore unemployed […]