Mancanti

Mancanti is the plural form of the Italian adjective mancante, meaning missing, absent, or lacking. It describes people or things that are not present or that are incomplete in a given context. As a noun, it can appear as i mancanti to refer collectively to missing persons or missing items in a list or investigation. Common expressions include documenti mancanti (missing documents) and persone mancanti (missing persons).

Origin and form: Mancante derives from the verb mancare, “to be missing” or “to lack.” The adjective follows the usual Romance-language pattern, with the feminine and masculine forms sharing the same plural: mancanti. This plural form is used for both genders when referring to a group.

Usage notes: Mancanti agrees with the noun it modifies in gender and number. It is frequent in administrative, legal, accounting, and journalistic language, as well as in everyday speech. In inventories, checklists, and reports, it marks items that have not been found or accounted for. The opposite sense is conveyed by presente or presenti when referring to items or people that are present or accounted for.

See also: related terms include mancanza (lacking or shortage), mancato (missed or absent in the masculine singular, used more as a past participle or adjective), and assente (absent). The word family centers on the idea of absence, lack, or incompleteness in various contexts.