imperfect
/ɪmˈpɜː(ɹ)fɪkt/adjective, noun, verb
imperfect is spelled I-M-P-E-R-F-E-C-T: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,005th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, imperfect means “Not perfect” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in imperfect?
| Letters | 9: I-M-P-E-R-F-E-C-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.8 times per million words; the 16,005th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is imperfect?
Imperfect appears 2.8 times per million words in written English, the 16,005th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce imperfect?
- /ɪmˈpɜː(ɹ)fɪkt/
- /ɪmˈpɜː(ɹ)fɛkt/
As a verb (“to make imperfect”): /ɪmpə(ɹ)ˈfɛkt/.
Imperfect has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-imperfect.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-imperfect.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of imperfect
- more imperfect comparative
- most imperfect superlative
- imperfects plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- imperfecting participle, present
- imperfected participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does imperfect mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Not perfect.
- 2
Unisexual: having either male (with stamens) or female (with pistil) flowers, but not with both.
- 3
Known or expected to be polyphyletic, as of a form taxon.
- 4
Representing a continuing or repeated action.
- 5
obsoleteLacking some elementary organ that is essential to successful or normal activity.
noun
- 1
Something having a minor flaw.
- 2
A tense of verbs used in describing a past action that is incomplete or continuous.
verb
- 1
to make imperfect
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
How do you abbreviate imperfect?
Wiktionary records 5 abbreviations of imperfect: imp., imperf, imperf., impf, ipf..
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Imperfect in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | imparfait |
| German | unvollkommen, mangelhaft, unvollständig, fehlerhaft , Imperfekt, Imperfektum |
| Portuguese | imperfeito |
| Spanish | imperfecto |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does imperfect come from?
From Middle English imperfit, from Old French imparfit (modern French imparfait), from Latin imperfectus.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).