imbalance

C2+ Topic:Space, Position & Direction

US /ɪmˈbæləns/ UK /ɪmˈbæləns/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
a lack of proportion or equilibrium between things

A hormonal imbalance can disrupt sleep and mood.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a lack of proportion or... disproportion disequilibrium inequality disparity unevenness

Opposites

balance equilibrium proportion symmetry

Word family

Derived forms imbalanced

Related forms balanceunbalance

Etymology

From in- ('not') + balance, from Old French balance, from Late Latin bilanx ('having two scale-pans'), from bi- ('two') + lanx ('plate, scale-pan').

bilanx Latin lanx Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Space, Position & Direction

# imbalance

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ɪmˈbæləns
**IPA (UK):** ɪmˈbæləns

## Meanings
1. a lack of proportion or equilibrium between things

## Examples
- A hormonal imbalance can disrupt sleep and mood.

## Synonyms
- disproportion
- disequilibrium
- inequality
- disparity
- unevenness

## Antonyms
- balance
- equilibrium
- proportion
- symmetry

## Derived Forms
- imbalanced

## Related Forms
- balance
- unbalance

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: bilanx
- Root: lanx

## Etymology
From in- ('not') + balance, from Old French balance, from Late Latin bilanx ('having two scale-pans'), from bi- ('two') + lanx ('plate, scale-pan').

## AI Etymology
imbalance comes from in- ('not') + balance, from Old French balance, from Late Latin bilanx ('having two scale-pans'), from bi- ('two') + lanx ('plate, scale-pan'). Morphologically, the prefixed shape matters: the initial element belongs to the recorded formation and helps explain the modern form's surface analysis. In present English, the noun sense is "a lack of proportion or equilibrium between things", so the historical development ends in a clearly identifiable modern dictionary use. The same base also appears in related forms such as balance and unbalance, and in derivatives such as imbalanced. Its semantic neighborhood includes disproportion, disequilibrium, inequality, and disparity, which helps locate the modern sense without adding a separate etymological claim. The named historical forms include Latin bilanx and Latin lanx.

## Topics
- Space, Position & Direction

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