shortfall

noun

short·​fall ˈshȯrt-ˌfȯl 

: a failure to come up to expectation or need

a budget shortfall

also : the amount of such failure

a $2 million shortfall

Examples of shortfall in a Sentence

a shortfall in milk production

Recent Examples on the Web

In mid-July, the World Health Organization said its joint $518 million plan to fight Ebola with the Africa CDC faced a funding shortfall of over $400 million. — Omer Awan, Forbes.com, 24 July 2026

Historically, Democrats have preferred the former path, proposing to raise taxes on the well-off to pay for the program’s shortfall while leaving benefits alone. — Marc Novicoff, The Atlantic, 24 July 2026

The total impact of tariffs since January 2025—compared with budgetary expectations—has been a shortfall of $825 billion. — Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 24 July 2026

Rinehart, a veteran of political and issue-advocacy campaigns, was a former swimmer at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, which proposed eliminating the sport in 2013 amid a campus budget shortfall. — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 23 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for shortfall

• aldol
• armhole
• atoll
• awol
• backhaul
• banal
• baseball
• befall
• cabal
• catchall
• cecal
• centrale