The facts about the history of the word dearth are quite simple: the word derives from the Middle English form derthe, which has the same meaning as our modern term. That Middle English form is assumed to have developed from an Old English form that was probably spelled dierth and was related to dēore, the Old English form that gave us the word dear. (Dear also once meant "scarce," but that sense of the word is now obsolete.) Dearth, in one form or another, has been used to describe things that are in short supply since at least the 13th century, when it often referred to a shortage of food.
It may also be a respite for booksellers, who have been grumbling for several years about sluggish sales and a dearth of dependable blockbuster fiction.—Julie Bosman, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2006… Earnhardt has recently hinted that a company-wide dearth of talent is the core reason his Chevy simply isn't as fast in 2005 as it's been in the past.—Lars Anderson, Sports Illustrated, 11 Apr. 2006AirNet, which hauls bank checks and other time-critical freight, used to require that its pilots have at least 1,200 hours of flight experience. Then, faced with a dearth of experienced applicants, it dropped the requirement to 500 hours. Now, it has no minimum.—Scott McCartney, Wall Street Journal, 10 Aug. 2000
there was a dearth of usable firewood at the campsite
the dearth of salesclerks at the shoe store annoyed us
Recent Examples on the WebThere’s never been any evidence that William cheated, but the rumor resurfaced this week, apparently because people on both sides of the Atlantic have become intrigued by Kate’s absence and frustrated by the dearth of official information about her whereabouts.—Martha Ross, The Mercury News, 13 Mar. 2024 Since early 2022, a crippling dearth of foreign currency triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Egypt’s heavy debt load has sent inflation to record highs and the value of the local currency plummeting to record lows.—Nada Rashwan, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2024 There, a dearth of job opportunities and an increase in desertification had led to crop failures and migration away from the semi-arid land.—Tom Watkins, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 With a dearth of rotating generators online, frequency dropped rapidly, and 7 million people lost power.—IEEE Spectrum, 14 Feb. 2024 Despite their dearth of knowledge about who made the manuscript and why, scholars are slowly parsing out the manuscript’s previous owners.—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 31 Jan. 2024 Related The people most susceptible to parasocial relationships are typically younger (and more impressionable), and/or have a dearth of personal relationships.—Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 25 Feb. 2024 The report cited as its raison d’être the dearth of public information on police conduct and arrests in small cities and suburban areas.—Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2024 Carmakers are facing a slowdown in enthusiasm for EVs in South Korea as higher interest rates and inflation prompt consumers to rein in spending, while concerns about battery fires and a dearth of fast chargers are also damping demand.—Heejin Kim, Fortune Asia, 7 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dearth.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English derthe, from Old English *dierth, from dēore dear
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