Representing being and having
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Using have and other possession verbs | page 8 of 9 |
Using lack
The verb lack behaves rather like the negative of have. When a person is described as lacking something, they do not have any or enough of a particular resource.
Sometimes that resource is within themselves:
In situations where Gerard becomes violent, in truth it is because he lacks confidence in himself. (Bank of English)
High rates of absenteeism might be an indication that a job is being carried out in poor working conditions, or that for some other reason the workforce lacks motivation. (Bank of English)
Sometimes it is an external resource that is missing:
This alone does not protect the child completely from low self-esteem if she lacks sufficient social support. (Bank of English)
The Croatian president accused Serbia of conducting war against Croatia, but he said he lacked the resources to order a full mobilisation to meet the threat. (Bank of English)
Like most verbs representing being and having, lack is rarely used in the continuous. However, lack does sometimes occur in the continuous if the lack is seen as being temporary:
He will improve in leaps and bounds because he now realises he can do it. You need the confidence to know you can still play. He still has everything he had before the injury. The only thing he is lacking is confidence. (Bank of English)
Teaching implications
Although lack is quite common, it should be noted that it is typically found in contexts that are more formal than average (as some of the vocabulary in the examples above demonstrates, eg absenteeism, mobilisation, resources). Students should therefore limit its use to more formal essay types and avoid sentences such as I'm afraid I lack time to help you, preferring I'm afraid I don't have time to help you instead.
Introduction
Using lack
