Definitions
Lax is an adjective that means not sufficiently strict, severe, or careful.
Example
The company has a lax attitude towards safety regulations.
Example
The teacher was criticized for being too lax with the students.
Lacks is the third person singular form of the verb 'lack', which means to be without or to not have enough of something.
Example
The team lacks experience.
Example
She lacks confidence in her abilities.
Tips To Remember the Differences
Here are a few tips to easily distinguish the difference between these words while keeping in mind the description we've provided:
To remember the difference between lax and lacks, you can associate lax with a lack of strictness or care, while lacks refers to a lack of something.
Remember this!
Remember, lax means not strict or careful enough, while lacks means to be without or not have enough of something.