scarcity
noun
scar·ci·ty
ˈsker-sə-tē 
-stē
plural scarcities
: the quality or state of being scarce
especially
: want of provisions for the support of life
Examples of scarcity in a Sentence
Scarcity of food forced the herds to move.
the scarcity of good restaurants around here is surprising
Recent Examples on the Web
The leadership of the AI trade has been winnowed down to Alphabet along with memory stocks and the energy/electrification infrastructure suppliers, which are exploiting product scarcity to impose a quasi-tax on the builders.
—
Michael Santoli, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
Last year, the Arizona Department of Game and Fish recorded a spike in human-bear conflicts, evidence that food scarcity was driving famished bears into human territory.
—Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 20 Feb. 2026
Given how much biomedical research has been conducted in space, the scarcity of research on reproduction surprised me.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
Supporting Value in the Long-Term Structural scarcity is relatively uncommon among blockchain networks whose function serves more to provide a platform for dApps and DeFi platforms than to act as a store of value like Bitcoin.
—Ethan M. Stone, Ascend Agency, 20 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scarcity
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Michael Santoli, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
Last year, the Arizona Department of Game and Fish recorded a spike in human-bear conflicts, evidence that food scarcity was driving famished bears into human territory.
—Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 20 Feb. 2026
Given how much biomedical research has been conducted in space, the scarcity of research on reproduction surprised me.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
Supporting Value in the Long-Term Structural scarcity is relatively uncommon among blockchain networks whose function serves more to provide a platform for dApps and DeFi platforms than to act as a store of value like Bitcoin.
—Ethan M. Stone, Ascend Agency, 20 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scarcity
Cite this Entry
“Scarcity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scarcity. Accessed 27 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
scarcity
noun
scar·ci·ty
ˈsker-sət-ē
ˈskar-
plural scarcities
: the quality or state of being scarce : a very small supply
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
