Imperfection
/ˌɪm.pəˈfek.ʃən/noun
The state or quality of being flawed, incomplete, or not ideal.
Did you know?Imperfection comes from Latin roots meaning “to complete” with a negative prefix, so the word itself carries the idea of something left unfinished rather than simply “bad.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*dhe-
“to put, place, set”
Latin
Latin
perfectus
“fully done, completed”
Latin
Latin
imperfectio
“lack of completeness; defect”
Old French
Old French
imperfection
“lack of perfection; flaw”
Middle English
English
imperfeccioun
“state of being imperfect”
Modern English
English
imperfection
“state or quality of being flawed or incomplete”