incompletion
LowFormal, Technical
Definition
Meaning
The state or quality of being incomplete, unfinished, or not whole.
The failure to finish or accomplish something; a lack of wholeness or fulfillment, sometimes referring specifically to an uncaught pass in American football.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Often denotes an undesirable state of lacking necessary parts or finality. In sports terminology (chiefly US), refers to a pass that is not caught by a receiver.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
In British English, the word is primarily a formal term for the state of not being complete. In American English, it has a strong, specific technical meaning in American football statistics.
Connotations
British: Negative, implying deficiency. American: Can be a neutral technical term in sports context.
Frequency
More frequent in American English due to its use in sports reporting.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[the + incompletion + of + NP][adj. + incompletion][verb + to + incompletion]Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “A sense of incompletion hung over the project.”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to unfulfilled contracts, unfinished deliverables, or pending tasks.
Academic
Used in philosophy, psychology, and art criticism to discuss works or theories lacking wholeness.
Everyday
Rare; might describe a feeling about an unfinished personal task.
Technical
In American football, a statistic for a pass not caught by a receiver.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The project was left to incompletion.
American English
- The quarterback was charged with an incompletion.
adverb
British English
- N/A
American English
- N/A
adjective
British English
- N/A
American English
- N/A
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The puzzle is in incompletion.
- A feeling of incompletion bothered her after she left the job half-done.
- The artist deliberately embraced a sense of incompletion in her latest sculpture series.
- The philosophical treatise's central argument suffered from a profound incompletion, leaving several critical paradoxes unresolved.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think: IN (not) + COMPLETION (finished) = INCOMPLETION (not finished).
Conceptual Metaphor
INCOMPLETION IS A GAP / A HOLE / A FRAGMENT.
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct calque from Russian 'незавершённость' or 'неполнота' if the context is very specific (e.g., sports).
- Do not confuse with 'incompleteness', which is more common for abstract states.
Common Mistakes
- Using 'incompletion' as a countable noun (e.g., 'three incompletions') is only correct in the American football sense.
- Overusing in everyday speech where 'unfinished' or 'incomplete' (adj.) would be more natural.
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'incompletion' most specifically and frequently used in American English?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
They are synonyms, but 'incompleteness' is more common for abstract, inherent qualities, while 'incompletion' often refers to the state or process of not being finished.
It is quite formal. In everyday speech, adjectives like 'unfinished' or 'incomplete' are more natural (e.g., 'The work is unfinished').
A completion is the opposite of an incompletion: a forward pass that is successfully caught by an eligible receiver on the same team.
Typically, it's an uncountable noun (referring to the state). However, in American football statistics, it is treated as countable (e.g., 'He threw five incompletions').