What does lacunary mean?
Lacunary describes something marked by gaps, omissions, or missing portions. It is especially useful for writing, history, evidence, and criticism, where a text or account may be incomplete, discontinuous, or suspiciously silent on important matters. The word can also describe physical spaces or cavities, and in mathematics it refers to sequences or series whose terms are omitted at intervals. Lacunary carries a more technical and literary tone than ordinary alternatives such as incomplete or full of gaps, often suggesting that the missing material is significant rather than merely accidental. Its unusual sound and strong connection to omission make it effective in formal description and precise analysis. The word ultimately derives from Latin lacuna, meaning a hollow, pit, or gap, so its basic image is one of an interrupted surface with spaces left unfilled.
adjectiveLacunary means full of gaps, omissions, or missing parts; incomplete or deficient. In mathematical contexts, it describes a sequence or series in which terms are omitted at intervals.
- Characterized by gaps, omissions, or missing information; incomplete.
- Having open spaces, cavities, or structural gaps.
- In mathematics, involving or describing a sequence or series with terms omitted at intervals.
"The memoir offered a lacunary account of the period, leaving several crucial events unexplained."
"The surviving manuscript is lacunary, with substantial portions missing between the surviving pages."
"In analysis, a lacunary series has terms that vanish over increasingly long intervals."
Lacunary comes from Latin lacuna, meaning a hollow, pit, or gap: the word literally means “full of holes.”
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does lacunary come from?
Lacunary derives from the Latin adjective lacunarius, meaning “full of holes or gaps,” which was formed from lacuna, “a hollow, pit, or gap.” The English word was borrowed in this Latin-derived form and developed a broad figurative sense for writing, evidence, and other records that contain omissions. The same Latin root also underlies related forms such as lacunar, lacunose, and lagoon.
Related word forms
How lacunary is actually used
Generally formal and somewhat literary. In general writing, it suggests that information has been omitted or that a record or argument is incomplete; in technical mathematics, it has a more specific meaning concerning sequences with gaps.
Easily confused with lacunary
A lacuna is a gap or omission itself, whereas lacunary is the adjective describing something that contains such gaps.