noun
-
inadequate supply; dearth; paucity
-
rarity or infrequent occurrence
Other Word Forms
- nonscarcity noun
Etymology
Origin of scarcity
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English scarsete(e), from Old North French escarsete; equivalent to scarce + -ity
Compare meaning
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The answers I received boiled down to one common theme: we live in a society based on scarcity.
From Salon
Arguably, the scarcity business model comes with its own economic hedge: Wait lists expand during economic booms and are depleted in leaner times, smoothing out sales.
In reality, much of what Americans think of as Italian food was shaped by immigration, scarcity, and reinvention — especially in the United States.
From Salon
Compute scarcity continues to weigh on Chinese development — yet it has created a mindset fundamentally at odds with the U.S. focus on brute-force scaling.
From MarketWatch
Wosley added the number of cards entering the market had now increased, which she said should settle down the market and stabilise prices as it reduced the scarcity element of some items.
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
