as in shortage
a falling short of an essential or desirable amount or number
the scarcity of good restaurants around here is surprising
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Recent Examples of scarcity
Solving the data gap One of the biggest challenges in robotics remains training data scarcity.
—
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 22 Jan. 2026
Quickly melting snow has a negative impact on the world’s water sources, causing water scarcity, which contributes to negative global warming trends.
—Laura Kiniry, Popular Science, 22 Jan. 2026
These physical market dynamics suggest the recent price surge reflects genuine scarcity rather than purely speculative positioning.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
As a result, 2 billion people worldwide live on sinking ground and 4 billion people face severe water scarcity at least one month every year, according to the report.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scarcity
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 22 Jan. 2026
Quickly melting snow has a negative impact on the world’s water sources, causing water scarcity, which contributes to negative global warming trends.
—Laura Kiniry, Popular Science, 22 Jan. 2026
These physical market dynamics suggest the recent price surge reflects genuine scarcity rather than purely speculative positioning.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
As a result, 2 billion people worldwide live on sinking ground and 4 billion people face severe water scarcity at least one month every year, according to the report.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for scarcity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scarcity
Noun
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In this city of 20 million people, the Delhi Water Board said last Thursday that 43 neighborhoods – home to about two million people – had been affected by water shortages.—
Rhea Mogul,
CNN Money,
1 Feb. 2026
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Critics argue the violence and staffing shortages that have long plagued Los Padrinos have spread and are now destabilizing other facilities.—
Jason Henry,
Daily News,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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The court acquitted Kim of two other charges, citing a lack of evidence and other reasons.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
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The meeting was canceled because of a lack of a quorum.—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scarcity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scarcity. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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