Definition: imperfect

Source: WordNet (r) 1.7

imperfect
     adj 1: not perfect; defective or inadequate; "had only an imperfect
            understanding of his responsibilities"; "imperfect
            mortals"; "drainage here is imperfect" [ant: perfect]
     2: having the attributes of man as opposed to e.g. divine
        beings; "I'm only human"; "frail humanity" [syn: fallible,
         frail, weak]
     n : a tense of verbs used in describing action that is on-going
         [syn: progressive, progressive tense, imperfect
         tense, continuous tense]

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Preterimperfect \Pre`ter*im*per"fect\, a. & n. [Pref. preter- +
   imperfect.] (Gram.)
   Old name of the tense also called 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.

            Something he left imperfect in the state. --Shak.

            Why, then, your other senses grow imperfect. --Shak.

   2. Wanting in some elementary organ that is essential to
      successful or normal activity.

            He . . . stammered like a child, or an amazed,
            imperfect person.                     --Jer. Taylor.

   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.

            Nothing imperfect or deficient left Of all that he
            created.                              --Milton.

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

   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.

Imperfect \Im*per"fect\, n. (Gram.)
   The imperfect tense; or the form of a verb denoting the
   imperfect tense.

Imperfect \Im*per"fect\, v. t.
   To make imperfect. [Obs.]