Meanings
plural shortages
- countableuncountableA lack or deficiency; an insufficient amount.
The admirable smoothness of the riding also reflected the greatest credit on those who, despite the difficulties caused by the shortage of men and materials, have succeeded in maintaining the track in such first-class order.
1946 July and August, Cecil J. Allen, “British Locomotive Practice and Performance”, in Railway Magazine, page 2132 more examples
The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania.[…]It was used to make kerosene, the main fuel for artificial lighting after overfishing led to a shortage of whale blubber.
2013 August 3, “The future of oil: Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847, archived from the original on 18 Dec 2013The coup was well-planned. Fuel was artificially held back so as to create shortages and dissatisfaction with Brotherhood rule. The old state-controlled unions mounted public sector strikes that further sabotaged the economy and annoyed people. Police-controlled thugs who had been used against the Tahrir Square demonstrations in 2011 came back into action.
2013 August 23, Jonathan Steele, “The west has little influence in Egypt”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 11, archived from the original on 05 Jan 2020, page 18
Synonyms & antonyms
nounthe property of being an amount by which something is less than expected or required
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*(s)ker-der.?
- Proto-Germanic*skertaną
- Proto-Germanic*skurtaz
- Proto-West Germanic*skurt
- Old Englishsċort
- Middle Englishschort
- Englishshort
- Englishshortage
Translations
Ancient Greek σπάνις
- σπάνις (spánis)lack or deficiency
Arabic عَجْز, نَقْص
- عَجْز (ʕajz)lack or deficiency
- نَقْص (naqṣ)lack or deficiency
Bulgarian ли́пса, недо́стиг
- ли́пса (lípsa)lack or deficiency
- недо́стиг (nedóstig)lack or deficiency
Catalan manca
- mancalack or deficiency
Chinese Mandarin 短缺, 緊缺 /紧缺
- 短缺 (duǎnquē)lack or deficiency
- 緊缺 /紧缺 (jǐnquē)lack or deficiency
Czech nedostatek
- nedostateklack or deficiency
Danish mangel, underskud
- mangellack or deficiency
- underskudlack or deficiency
Dutch tekort
- tekortlack or deficiency
Esperanto malabundo
- malabundolack or deficiency
Finnish pula, puute
- pulalack or deficiency
- puutelack or deficiency
French défaut, rareté
- défautlack or deficiency
- raretélack or deficiency
- pénurielack or deficiency
- déficitlack or deficiency
- insuffisancelack or deficiency
German Mangel, Knappheit
- Mangellack or deficiency
- Knappheitlack or deficiency
Greek έλλειψη
- έλλειψη (élleipsi)lack or deficiency
Hebrew מַחְסוֹר
- מַחְסוֹר (makhsór)lack or deficiency
Hindi कमी, अभाव
- कमी (kamī)lack or deficiency
- अभाव (abhāv)lack or deficiency
- अपर्याप्तता (aparyāptatā)lack or deficiency
Hungarian hiány
- hiánylack or deficiency
Italian scarsità, mancanza
- scarsitàlack or deficiency
- mancanzalack or deficiency
- penurialack or deficiency
- insufficienzalack or deficiency
- carenzalack or deficiency
Japanese 不足, 欠損
- 不足 (fusoku)lack or deficiency
- 欠損 (kesson)lack or deficiency
Korean 부족, 흠손
- 부족 (bujok)lack or deficiency
- 흠손 (heumson)lack or deficiency
- 결손 (gyeolson)lack or deficiency
Latin inopia
- inopialack or deficiency
Māori kōpaka, ngōuruuru
- kōpakalack or deficiency
- ngōuruurulack or deficiency
- kōpakatangalack or deficiency
Norwegian Bokmål mangel, underskudd
- mangellack or deficiency
- underskuddlack or deficiency
Polish niedosyt, niedostatek
- niedosytlack or deficiency
- niedostateklack or deficiency
- braklack or deficiency
Portuguese falta, carência
- faltalack or deficiency
- carêncialack or deficiency
- insuficiêncialack or deficiency
Romanian deficit, penurie
- deficitlack or deficiency
- penurielack or deficiency
Russian недоста́ток, нехва́тка
- недоста́ток (nedostátok)lack or deficiency
- нехва́тка (nexvátka)lack or deficiency
- дефици́т (deficít)lack or deficiency
- недоста́точность (nedostátočnostʹ)lack or deficiency
Scottish Gaelic cion, gainne
- cionlack or deficiency
- gainnelack or deficiency
- gainneadlack or deficiency
Slovak nedostatok
- nedostatoklack or deficiency
Spanish falta, carestía
- faltalack or deficiency
- carestíalack or deficiency
- escasezlack or deficiency
- penurialack or deficiency
- exigüidadlack or deficiency
- carencialack or deficiency
- deficiencialack or deficiency
- déficitlack or deficiency
- carecimientolack or deficiency
- falencialack or deficiency
Swahili uhaba
- uhabalack or deficiency
Swedish knapphet, underskott
- knapphetlack or deficiency
- underskottlack or deficiency
Thai การขาดแคลน, ความขาดแคลน
- การขาดแคลน (gaan-kàat-klɛɛn)lack or deficiency
- ความขาดแคลน (kwaam-kàat-klɛɛn)lack or deficiency
Turkish azlık, kesinti
- azlıklack or deficiency
- kesintilack or deficiency
Ukrainian недоста́ток, неста́ча
- недоста́ток (nedostátok)lack or deficiency
- неста́ча (nestáča)lack or deficiency
- дефіци́т (deficýt)lack or deficiency
- недоста́тність (nedostátnistʹ)lack or deficiency
Urdu کَمی
- کَمی (kamī)lack or deficiency
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
shortage. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shortage
“shortage.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shortage. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shortage,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shortage.
Source: shortage on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.