Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To use to a lesser degree than is normal or desirable.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The act of using (something) less than expected.
  • verb to use (something) less than expected

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

under- +‎ use

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Examples

  • Dr. Laura Keller, a physician and member of Minnesota Pharmacists Association, was another testifier from the medical community who laid out clear and rational uses for antibiotics, explaining that antibiotic resistance is not caused by overuse but by underuse, that is, not giving a strong and/or long enough dose and treatment to kill infections.

    WebWire | Recent Headlines 2010

  • Andrew Rice makes a good point when he says that foreign investors can bring in new technologies and boost the productivity of underused land to feed not only foreign investors but Africans as well (though the question that follows is whether foreign investors view subsistence farming as "underuse" of land).

    Opinion Source: Delivering summaries of editorial and op-ed pieces from major papers by email. 2010

  • "Dealing with the loss of a limb, she's always going to be slightly off balance because she will have underuse on one side," he says.

    A Surfer and a Phenom at Her Very Core Jen Murphy 2011

  • I'm finding season 6 to be an incohesive mess, with little apparent "through line" when it comes to plot and characterization, and disappointing underuse of both Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins.

    Ask Matt: Supernatural, USA vs. NBC, Lights Out, Nikita, Criminal Minds and More! 2011

  • Or rather Voila, the insured overuse the resource, the uninsured underuse it.

    Fogel Vs. Wonks, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 2009

  • This notion still holds true, and the result is both the overuse and the underuse of the "terrorist" label.

    Was it tragedy in Tucson? Or terrorism? Daniel L. Byman 2011

  • This last is a situation of notice failure/underuse of patents — a situation where people ignore rights and then you get disputes and litigation.

    Archive 2009-05-01 Rebecca Tushnet 2009

  • “The savings would come from standardizing and simplifying all sectors of the health care system; implementing measures to reduce overuse and underuse of health care; investing in effective treatment and prevention; and reducing costs by developing technology and regulatory reforms.”

    duh pookie 2009

  • This windfall could come from a new approach to government allocation of airwaves, moving use to the booming mobile and broadband industries from underuse by older technologies such as television.

    Spectrum Auctions? There's an App for That L. Gordon Crovitz 2011

  • “The savings would come from standardizing and simplifying all sectors of the health care system; implementing measures to reduce overuse and underuse of health care; investing in effective treatment and prevention; and reducing costs by developing technology and regulatory reforms.”

    duh pookie 2009

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