DEFECT
A lack of something that should be present. Applied especially to human conduct, when one fails to do what should be done (as being silent when one should speak), or falls short of the perfection expected (as an employee not putting in a full day's work), or abandons responsibility undertaken, or does not fulfill promises seriously made.
All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.