dearth

(dûrth)
n.

1. A scarce supply; a lack: "the dearth of uncensored, firsthand information about the war" (Richard Zoglin).
2. Shortage of food; famine.

[Middle English derthe, from Old English *dēorthu, costliness, from dēore, costly. See dear¹.]

View more Literature & Language videos

rapidly extended its meaning from its 13th century restriction to food, to refer to a scarcity of anything:

Unable to find what she needed in 'romantic' novels, Letty had turned to biographies, of which there was no dearth—Barbara Pym, 1977.

Dearths typically include talent, information, evidence, data, inspiration, and opportunity.

Previous:	dear, dearly, deal noun, deaf mute
Next:	debacle, debar, disbar, debatable

noun

The condition of lacking a needed or usual amount: absence, lack, want. See excess/insufficiency/enough.

n

Definition: insufficiency, scarcity
Antonyms: abundance, excess, plentifulness, plenty, sufficiency

IN BRIEF: Lacking sufficient supply; a shortage.

The campfire waned due to a dearth of available firewood.

LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!

See words rhyming with "dearth."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Dearth.

Dansk (Danish)
n. - knaphed, mangel

Nederlands (Dutch)
schaarste

Français (French)
n. - pénurie, manque, stérilité (d'idées)

Deutsch (German)
n. - Mangel

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - έλλειψη, ανεπάρκεια, σιτοδεία, λιμός

Italiano (Italian)
mancanza

Português (Portuguese)
n. - carência (f), fome (f), escassez (f)

Русский (Russian)
нехватка

Español (Spanish)
n. - escasez, falta, ausencia

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - brist, knapphet

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
缺乏, 饥谨, 粮食不足

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 缺乏, 饑謹, 糧食不足

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 결여, 기아, 살인

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 欠乏, 不足

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) قله وجود, ندرة, مجاعه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮מחסור, נדירות‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.