adj.

1. Not perfect.
2. Grammar. Of or being the tense of a verb that shows, usually in the past, an action or a condition as incomplete, continuous, or coincident with another action.
3. Botany. Having either stamens or a pistil only. Used of a flower.
4. Law. Not legally enforceable: an imperfect contract.

n.

1. A piece of merchandise having a minor flaw that does not impair its use, usually sold at a discount.
2. (Abbr. imp. or imperf.) Grammar.
   1. The imperfect tense.
   2. A verb in the imperfect tense.

[Middle English imparfit, from Old French imparfait, from Latin imperfectus : in-, not; see in–¹ + perfectus, perfect; see perfect.]

imperfectly im·per'fect·ly adv.
imperfectness im·per'fect·ness n.

adjective

Having a defect or defects: defective, faulty. See better/worse.

adj

Definition: flawed
Antonyms: excellent, faultless, finished, perfect, pure, unblemished, unflawed

---

Term applied in early mensural Notation to a relationship of 2:1 (as opposed to perfect, 3:1) in time (the relation between semibreve and breve) or prolation (the relation between minim and semibreve).

---

IN BRIEF: Having some fault or flaw.

There is always a but in this imperfect world. — Anne Bronte (1820-1849), English novelist.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - ufuldkommen, ufuldstændig, mangelfuld, defekt
n. - datid, imperfekt

Nederlands (Dutch)
onvolmaakt, onvoltooid verleden tijd, met gebreken, eindigend op de dominant (muziek)

Français (French)
adj. - incomplet, défectueux, faux (un raisonnement)
n. - (Ling) imparfait

Deutsch (German)
n. - Imperfekt
adj. - unvollkommen, unvollständig, mangelhaft

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (γραμμ.) παρατατικός
adj. - ατελής, ελλιπής, πλημμελής (κν. λειψός), ελαττωματικός

Italiano (Italian)
imperfetto

Português (Portuguese)
n., -
adj. - imperfeito (m)

Русский (Russian)
несовершенный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - imperfecto, defectuoso, deficiente
n. - pretérito imperfecto

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - progressiv form (isht i imperfektum)
adj. - ofullbordad, felaktig, imperfektiv(isk), pågående (form)

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
不完美的, 有瑕疵的, 有缺点的, 不完整的, 未完成体

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 不完美的, 有瑕疵的, 有缺點的, 不完整的
n. - 未完成體

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 불완전한, 미완료의
n. - 미완료 시제, 반과거

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 不完全な, 不十分な, 欠点のある, 未完了の, 半過去の
n. - 未完了時制

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) صيغه الماضي الناقص (صفه) ناقص, غير تام‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮לא-מושלם, פגום‬
n. - ‮זמנים המציינים פעולה שלא נשלמה בשפות האירופיות‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.